HYDERABAD, Jan 9: A man and his son died after inhaling poisonous gas in a choked gutter they had wriggled into to open in a Qasmibabad locality on Monday. One of the neighbours who tried to drag them out also died and another was admitted to a hospital in serious condition.

Zahir Abbas Memon, 18, wriggled into the gutter in Ghafoor Jehanian Goth to remove blockage. When he did not come out after a long time his father Dhani Bux, 55, entered the hole af ter him but he too did not come up.

Later, their neighbours Muzaffar Jafri and Sanaullah went after them and managed to pull out the unconscious father and son. But the effort proved too taxing and they too fell unconscious.

The four were taken to a hospital where doctors pronounced Dhani Bux, Zaheer Abbas and Muzaffar Jafri dead. Sanaullah's life was saved but he in a critical condition.

The deaths sparked anger among people of the area and they held a demonstration against the Water and Sanitation Agency.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Wasa in a statement expressed regrets on the deaths but said the agency was not responsible for the tragic incident.

He said the deceased had taken in upon themselves to open the choked gutter instead of informing Wasa personnel and that too without adopting precautionary measures. They fell victim to poisonous gases emanating from the sewage, he said.

If they had acquired services of professional sweepers, the incident would not have occurred, he said.