A DARK cloud gathered over Pumula South yesterday as residents of the
suburb were still coming to grips with the death of four children who
died when the house in which they were sleeping caught fire on Tuesday
morning.
Pamela Mhlanga
Own Correspondent
When Southern Eye visited the house the mood was sombre, with people
speaking in hushed tones as they all sought answers to why the children
met such a painful death.
Mourners and concerned neighbours gathered outside the house, still
under construction, while charred furniture had been removed from the
room where the now dead children had slept.
The bereaved family said they were still coming to terms with the death, expressing shock and disbelief.
In an interview, the family spokesperson, Hloniphani Moyo — an uncle
to the deceased children — said the incident was disturbing in that it
occurred at a period when the family was gathered at the house mourning
the loss of one of his sisters who recently passed away.
Moyo said the incident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday around
1am, when one of his sisters, sleeping in the same room with the
children fell asleep after she had lit a candle.
“The room they were sleeping in caught fire. My sister managed to
escape and called for help, but the children were not lucky,” he said.
At the time of the interview, Moyo was purchasing medical material at a
local pharmacy for his injured sister, whom he said had been admitted at
Mpilo Central Hospital.
“My sister is admitted at Mpilo and I am yet to visit her at the
hospital today to see her condition, but others who have seen her said
she was still in a state of shock and was unable to speak,” he said.
“She only spoke once when she asked to drink water.”
One of the mourners, a neighbour, said locals responded swiftly to
the SOS by running with buckets of water and sand in an effort to douse
the flames before the fire brigade arrived at the scene about an hour
later.
With the winter season, there have been an increase in the number of cases where houses have caught fire.
One of the latest cases has been where a mattress caught fire. However, no one was injured.
Incessant power cuts also mean people have to resort to using candles for lighting, posing risks.
http://www.southerneye.co.zw/2013/07/25/house-of-horror/
No comments:
Post a Comment