Three siblings die in Bukit Mertajam blaze

BUKIT MERTAJAM: Three siblings died in a fire which razed five houses in Kampung Kecil, Jalan Betek, here early yesterday morning.

FIERY DEATH: A member of the public helps a fireman lift the body of the third fire victim. — Bernama photo

Ooi Koay Yin Ying, 12, Ooi Koay Sew Nee, 11, and Ooi Koay Peng Teik, nine, all pupils of Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina Keow Kuang, were asleep in a room on the top floor of their house when the fire broke out at about 5.40am.

Penang Fire and Rescue Department operations officer Wan Azmi Ahmad said their parents and five other family members escaped with light injuries and were now being treated at the Bukit Mertajam Hospital.

“The fire spread very fast as the houses were situated close to each other,” he said.

Seventeen firemen from the Bandar Perda and Bukit Mertajam fire stations arrived at the scene at 5.47am after receiving a distress call and took five minutes to bring the blaze under control, he said.

The cause of the fire and losses have yet to be ascertained.

Meanwhile, the victims’ eldest sister, Ooi Koay Ching Ching, 15, when met at the hospital, was still traumatised by the mishap and said that she felt so bad for not being able to save her siblings.

“I was sleeping with them in that room. When I saw the fire, I screamed and asked them to run to safety with me, but they were too afraid to do so,” she added. — Bernama