Toddler, elderly woman, die in fires

A shack fire claimed the life of a one-year-old in Nkampini village on Wednesday morning.
A shack fire claimed the life of a one-year-old in Nkampini village on Wednesday morning.
Image: SUPPLIED

Butterworth police have opened an inquest docket after a shack fire claimed the life of a one-year-old in Nkampini village on Wednesday morning.

Police spokesperson Captain Jackson Manatha said the toddler was playing in the shack with his four-year-old cousin when the dwelling caught fire.

“The deceased’s mother, who was in another house [nearby], was alerted by her neighbours that the shack was on fire but it was too strong for them to extinguish,” he said, adding that the deceased’s mother had allegedly made a fire outside the home for cooking purposes and one of the children had taken some of the firewood back to the shack to play with.

Manatha added that the department of social development had arranged trauma counselling for the four-year-old.  

In a separate incident, an 85-year-old woman died in a house fire in Thongwana village.

Manatha said the woman, who lived alone, was believed to be cooking a meal on Tuesday evening when her house caught fire.

“The house of the granny was seen in flames by members of the community. She died in her house. The cause of the fire has not yet been established. The identity of the deceased is being withheld until all her relatives are notified of her death,” Manatha said.

 

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