Ayesha Kumudini died on the 24th of November while she was being treated for burns at the National Hospital in Colombo. Her post- mortem report said she died of an infection from the external burns she had sustained.
But there is confusion about how the young woman, a resident of Handunpitiya in Welikanda, sustained her burns. Her death comes at a time when there has been a spate of explosions which are being linked to the wrong gas composition in domestic gas cylinders.
A mainstream Sinhala media reported on their website that Ayesha died as a result of a gas explosion.
The police in a special statement said she died because she set herself on fire and not because of a faulty gas cylinder or regulator.
According to initial reports that are emerging the victim had been rushed to a hospital in Polonaruwa for treatment soon after the incident.
At the hospital she had told her father that she had got burnt after she used a match to light the gas cooker after her first attempt to light it had failed.
At least five explosions are known of so far and they have been reported from Weligama, Ratnapura, Colombo, Hokandara and Nikawaratiya. The last three incidents have taken place in the last week. People have sustained injuries in some of the explosions and have had to be hospitalized.
The two main gas suppliers, Laughs gas and Litro gas, have denied they changed the percentages of the butane and propane gases in cylinders.
