CHENNAI: The roof of an autorickshaw driver C Marimuthu's house collapsed at Kizha Ambikapuram near Arimangalam in Tiruchirappalli. The house constructed in 1972 saw a collapse resulting in the loss of four lives.

The victims were identified as Marimuthu's mother, Shanti (75), his wife Vijayalakshmi (45) and their children, Pradeepa (12) and Harini (10). The incident happened while Marimuthu was en route to attend a condolence function in Chennai. As they slept in the hall, a portion of the roof collapsed leading to the unfortunate demise of the family members.

Residents were alerted around 7 am when a neighbour noticed the roof collapsing and immediately informed the police. Despite the timely arrival of the fire brigade at 8 o'clock, the rescue efforts were unsuccessful and the four people were pronounced dead at the scene. Their bodies were subsequently transported to the government hospital in Tiruchirappalli for post-mortem examinations.

The Ariyamangalam police have initiated an investigation into the incident and have registered a case in connection with the tragic collapse.