Tragedy in Chennai: Two Children Dead, Parents Critical After Pest Control Turns Deadly

A tragic incident unfolded in the Kundrathur locality of Chennai after a pest control treatment, which aimed to eradicate a rat menace, turned fatal for a family. Two children - six years old and one - died after inhaling rodenticide while their parents Giridharan, 34, and Pavithra, 31 are fighting for life at a city hospital.

On the same November 13, the family had engaged a professional pest control service to deal with an infestation of rats in the apartment. The workers from the pest control applied powders and tablets in all areas of the house in a bid to rid the household of the rodents. In this case, the family was not fortunate as the chemicals meant to kill the rodents proved fatal once they were inhaled.

The family, with their kids G. Vaishnavi and G. Sai Sudharshan, slept in one of the rooms as they had laid the chemicals there. They turned on the air conditioner in the room without knowing that they were sealing it from all the toxic fumes in the room. By the early hours of November 14, Giridharan woke up with short breathing and uneasiness. Concerned, he called a friend to rush the family to the hospital, but it was too late. The children died in spite of immediate medical intervention.

Both parents are presently undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Porur, and the doctors are hopeful that they would make good recoveries. But this incident raises serious questions about the safety of these chemicals used for pest control and the dangers that lie in wait for families through these chemical sprays. The police investigation has gone into the incident and have booked the two employees of the pest control service who carried out the treatment.

Local authorities have voiced a sense of increased vigilance on the part of residents with regard to pest control services. Suffice it to say, people ought to be attentive with regard to ventilation and safe precautions before going out and spraying those chemicals around the home. Evidently, it would do well to use eco-friendly pest control in order to avoid such horrible tragedies.

The community has been left in shock after the death of these two innocent souls, and it waits to be seen how the chemicals applied during the pest control made the family end in such a terrible situation.

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