One child has died, and his two siblings left with injuries after a fire broke out in their home in Awka, Anambra.
The fire caught three children of the same parents, Mr and Mrs Michael Anor, at their home at Brave-Heart Flats on the first floor on a three-storey building, opposite Marian Plaza, Close to St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church, Iyiagu Estate Awka.
The fire started in one of the flats when a can of kerosene behind a refrigerator exploded.
The three children were rescued with burn injuries by firefighters who put out the fire after being alerted by neighbours.
One child died on Sunday morning from burn injuries; the other two were taken to Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital, Awka for treatment.
The chief fire fighter in Anambra State, Martin Agbili, confirmed the incident.
“We received a distress call of fire outbreak at Brave-Heart Flats at the 1st floor of a 3-storeyed building, opposite Marian Plaza, Close to St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church, Iyiagu Estate, Awka.
“We deployed our firefighters and two fire trucks to the scene. We put off the fire, and no life was lost, but three children in the flat were burnt and were rushed to the Prime Specialist Hospital at Awka.
“The cause of the fire outbreak was a kerosene explosion which emanated from a gallon of kerosene kept at the back of a deep freezer. The building was also saved, and we conducted post-fire risk assessment of the building,” he said.
The state police spokesperson, SP Haruna Mohammed when contacted said he was not aware of the fire incident, nor the death of one of the affected children.
