Two children die in house fire

Unattended candle suspected to have caused the blaze

Stock photo.
Stock photo.
Image: anyvidstudio/123RF

Two children, a toddler and a five-year-old, have died in Soweto in the early hours of Thursday morning after an unattended candle led to the room they were sleeping in to catch fire.

According to City of Joburg emergency management services (EMS) spokesperson Nana Radebe-Kgiba, firefighters responded to a structural fire at Doornkop, Soweto.

"On arrival firefighters crew found that the family and community members had extinguished the bedroom that caught fire where the two bodies were discovered," said Radebe-Kgiba.

According to Joburg EMS a preliminary investigation has concluded that an unattended candle was determined as the cause of the fire.

"It is unfortunate that most of these incidents are caused by open flames and unsafe use of heating appliances. Emergency management services urges communities to take necessary precautions when using heating appliances and avoid leaving candles unattended," said Radebe-Kgiba.

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