Kota Kinabalu: A fire in Kg Pulau Penampang, Manggatal, claimed the lives of an 80-year-old and her 14-year-old granddaughter, Tuesday.
Preliminary investigations showed the house was occupied by six people comprising a man and five women when the fire broke out at about 5.15am.
Kota Kinabalu District Police Chief ACP Kasim Muda said a family member resting on the house’s veranda heard an explosion coming from the kitchen area.
window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []};googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.defineSlot('/22826383987/dailyexpress_inline', [1, 1], 'gpt-passback').addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.enableServices();googletag.display('gpt-passback');});The family member immediately noticed the kitchen was on fire and, together with other relatives, tried to put out the flames.
However, the fire spread quickly, trapping the two victims.
Early findings by the Fire and Rescue Department suggest that the fire may have been caused by an electrical short circuit, but further investigations are ongoing to determine the actual cause.
The Fire and Rescue Department said the fire involved a permanent house which was 90 per cent destroyed and a Perodua Axia parked nearby which was partly damaged.
A total of 31 personnel from various agencies, including the police, Health Department and Sabah Electricity were deployed to the scene.
Firefighters managed to control the blaze at 5.55am using two water jets and a water tanker.
However, they were unable to save the two trapped victims. The remains of the elderly woman was found at 7.13am, followed by her granddaughter at 7.33am. Both bodies have been sent to Queen Elizabeth Hospital for post-mortem.
Kasim urged the public to prioritise home safety, particularly regarding electrical wiring and appliance usage.
“Ensure electrical devices are turned off when not in use, avoid overloading sockets and conduct regular checks on home wiring systems,” he said.
He also pointed out the importance of having fire extinguishers and emergency exit plans in place.
