KUCHING: Two families at two separate locations escaped unharmed after their respective houses caught fire today (Jan 25).
The first incident happened around 3.10pm in Kampung Sudat, Jalan Datuk Stephen Yong.
Firefighters from Batu Lintang fire station rushed to the scene after receiving a distress call. They arrived to find thick smoke coming out from the house and the fire still blazing.
The firefighters successfully extinguished the flames at 5.05pm. By then, the house was 80 percent damaged.
No casualty was reported as the family of 10 managed to escape safely.
The firefighters also managed to stop the fire from spreading to a carpentry store nearby.
After receiving news of the incident, Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang and Democratic Action Party (DAP) Batu Kitang chairman Abdul Aziz Isa Marindo went to the scene to visit the family members. Lo donated mattresses and daily necessities to the affected family.
Meanwhile, a double-storey house in Kampung Sejijak, Jalan Matang, was engulfed in flames around 3.45pm.
Petra Jaya fire chief Azaharul Sahari despatched his men to the scene after receiving an emergency call.
By the time the firefighters arrived, the house and a store behind the house were already burnt to the ground.
No casualty was reported as the family of three managed to escape safely.
The fire was successfully put out at 5.24pm. The cause of the fire as well as losses incurred are still under investigation.
