BEAUFORT: Two families were left homeless after their water village house in Kampung Laut Weston, here, were destroyed in a fire on Wednesday.
The non-permanent house was completely burnt down. However, a disabled child was rescued by nearby villagers.
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Beaufort Fire and Rescue Station Chief Ishak Jabas said the department received an emergency call at 2.30pm and deployed two fire engines with six personnel to the scene, located about 30 kilometres away.
Firefighters arrived at 3.29pm and began extinguishing the blaze. The fire was brought under control around 4pm.
The operation was later assisted by nine members of the Kg Lubok Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Ishak said the quick response by firefighters prevented the fire from spreading to other nearby houses, as the houses in the water village are built very close to each other.
The cause of the fire and the estimated losses are still under investigation.
Meanwhile, Town Safety Committee Chairman Amin Abas said the child’s parents were in Beaufort town at the time of the incident to buy daily necessities, leaving the child with the grandparents.
“Fortunately, the disabled child was rescued by nearby residents,” he said.
