A
two-year-old baby girl died in a fire outbreak which rendered many
people homeless on Sunday in a suburb area of Ovom Community in Yenagoa
Local Government Area of Bayelsa.
NAN correspondent who visited
the scene learnt that the fire, which destroyed no fewer than 15 houses
in the area, started at about 8:00 p.m. on Saturday.
The incident occurred opposite the Law Faculty of the Niger Delta University (NDU) popularly known as BGS in the area.
Some
of the affected persons told NAN that the inferno, which also damaged
property worth millions of Naira, was caused by candle light.
One of the affected persons, Mr Godwin Arum, a business man, told NAN that all his property was gutted by the fire.
He
said “Yes, that baby girl that was burnt was only two years-old; the
mother locked her in the house while selling in their shop because the
baby was sleeping before the fire started.
“Right now, the parents of the baby are yet to be found.
“As you can see, all my belongings are destroyed by the fire, my only cloth now is the one I am clad in.
“This is so shocking, how can people light a candle in the house and leave it on with no one to attend to it?.
“So,
how and where do I start rebuilding my life from now? I have lost
everything and it is a very painful experience,” Arum said.
Mrs Victoria Onwuka, one of the affected persons and mother in a family of seven, also condemned the use of candle in houses.
Onwuka said her children were safe but she lost some property.
“I
was able to pick some of our property and my children have been taken
to my friend’s house for now; I pray God will provide another place for
us to live in.
“The fire service was able to put out the fire but
it had already razed many property before they got here to put it out,”
Onnwuka said.
Mr Prince Ogun, Station Driver, Bayelsa Fire Service
Command, said that they could not get to the scene on time but they
were able to put out the fire.
Ogun said “the fire started in the
night; the people living in the area came and called us, but before we
could get to the scene, the fire had already gone far.
“We went there with several fire personnel and three of our trucks and were able to put out the fire.
“Many
houses were burnt and a two-year-old girl lost her life in the inferno.
It is very tragic but we thank God the fire did not go beyond this.
“I urge the public against the use of candle because many lives have been lost to fire incidents caused by candle fires.
“If people must use candle light, then they must be very alert and extremely careful,” Ogun said.
All efforts to speak with parents of the deceased baby girl proved abortive.
- Naira abuse: EFCC, Cubana Chief Priest to settle out of court
- “It’s Naira government said we shouldn’t spray not perfume” – Sabinus fumes after his encounter hugging a fan (Video)
- Rangnick snubs Bayern Munich job to stay with Austria
- “How much did they pay her to say this in public” – Netizens react to Gorgeous Doll’s apology to Davido’s wife, Chioma
- “I told Chioma everything”- Davido’s ex-girlfriend Gorgeous Doll reveals (video)