Alappuzha: Relatives and neighbours of the family of Mathew Mulackal who died in a fire mishap in Kuwait on Friday are struggling to come to grips with the shocking news.

"They just returned to Kuwait the other day after being here for the past month. They were on their annual vacation. They were very happy, the children were looking forward to their next visit home while they were leaving for Kuwait. Then we hear about their tragic death yesterday night. We are really shocked,'' says Benny Alex, a close relative and neighbour.

Mathew Mulackal has been residing in Kuwait for almost 18 years. Mathew worked for Reuters while his wife Lini worked as a staff nurse. The cause of their death is said to be an electric short circuit in their flat on Friday night. The heat due to the fire which erupted as a result of the short circuit and the inhalation of the toxic fumes led to the death of the family of four.

“The postmortem of the bodies is underway. As per the information we received, the postmortem of the father and mother are over and that of the children remains. These two days are official holidays in Kuwait. So things are moving a little slowly. We expect the bodies to be brought here by Monday,'' said Benny.