Old Native Resthouse destroyed in fire

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KAPIT: The old Native Resthouse of Kapit District Council, which is located at its Song branch office, was razed to the ground late Friday afternoon.

The wooden structure, which sat at the junction of the road leading to Kampung Gelam, was gutted by fire at about 4 pm. It was occupied by outboard driver Charlie Usit, who is a council staff, and his family.

An eye witness said it took only a few minutes for the fire to engulf the whole house.

As the fire spread too fast, there was no time for the family members to salvage their belongings.

At the time of the incident, Charlie was on his way to Kapit to participate in the Local Agenda 21 and Community Service programme at Rumah Itu, Sungai Pulang, Baleh.

Song district has no Fire and Rescue Department, but construction of its branch office was presently in progress.

The cause of the fire has yet to be ascertained, but initial finding revealed that it could be due to a short circuit.