Photo shows what is left of the wooden house and the storage unit.
KAPIT: A three-tonne lorry, a wooden house and a storage unit were destroyed during a fire that struck a site on Lane 3 of Jalan Airport here on Sunday.
It was confirmed that at the time of the incident, there was nobody at the premises. It is also said that the house was unoccupied.
According to Kapit Fire and Rescue Department chief Erwandy Tugor, 17 firefighters on board two fire trucks were rushed to the scene following a distress call received at 6.54pm.
“It took my men about two hours to put out the fire. There was no report of casualty,” he said, adding that the site of the fire is located about 2km from the station and there are many wooden houses – up to 30 units – around it.
Erwandy said as Lane 3 was very narrow, his men had to park their heavy vehicles at the Jalan Airport-JalanSuhaili junction.
“The nearest fire hydrant was about 400 feet away from the burning units. These circumstances made the operation a bit challenging.
“The firefighters later received assistance from members of the police, Civil Defence Force and Rela, all of whom worked together to help control the crowd of onlookers,” he added.
According to the owner of the premises, Tang Sing Hock, 76, a group of children playing nearby was the first to notice the fire at the spot where the lorry was parked.
“Within minutes, the fire spread to the storage unit and wooden house.
“There was an explosion at one point; we immediately called for help, and the firefighters arrived not long after that,” said Tang, adding that the storage unit had housed ‘loads of plastic pipes and wires’.