Ten homeless after Pere St blaze

Fire ravaged a Pere Street, Kitty two-storey building yesterday leaving ten persons seeking shelter at relatives.

The burnt house.
The burnt house.

According to a neighbour, the fire started at about 1:30 pm in the upper flat. Two children ages ten and two years old were reportedly in the house at the time of the fire but were rescued by neighbours who observed the blaze.

The adults who lived in the house were not around when the fire began. The blaze is suspected to have been caused by power lines connected to the house as sparks from the lines were seen earlier in the day.

According to the neighbour, the area was also experiencing a fluctuation in the supply of power and the area had a blackout for a period of time.

Two fire trucks arrived promptly and contained the fire to the one building but had to leave while flames were still emanating from the upper flat as both trucks were out of water.

Around an hour later two other trucks arrived and began dousing the flames.

The neighbour said that they were informed by the fire-fighters that at the time of the fire there was a demand for tenders as there were calls for three different blazes during the same period.

 

Four persons were reportedly occupying the upper flat while six persons resided in the lower flat.