Boy burnt to death in candle fire

A TWO-year-old boy from Kandep in Enga was burnt to death while he was sleeping alone in a settlement home in Mt Hagen on Tuesday.
He was identified as Israel Rambo Jack from Murip village.
The incident took place on Tuesday at Waiwaves in Mt Hagen.
Waiwaves community leaders John Enga and John Kaupa  expressed concern over the death and warned parents to be a careful as they believed the fire started from a burning candle.
The child’s security guard father Paiyo Jack was on duty that night.
The child’s mother Alice took their four-month-old child and went to a night market, leaving Jack alone at home.
Neighbours said the fire could have started from a candle.
Enga said that the cause of fire was not known because there was no one at home when it started.
He said five adults and 15 children lived in the same house and they also lost all their belongings.
“The fire could have started around 7pm and we were alerted an hour later, which was too late.”
He said they tried to rescue the boy but the fire was too strong for them.
Enga said they alerted the Mt Hagen fire station and a team of fire fighters arrived and managed to save the remains of the boy.
“The remains were later taken to the Mt Hagen provincial hospital morgue.”
Israel’s father Jack said that he was shocked to hear the news.
“To lose my child in a fire is unacceptable and a very sad moment in my life,” he said.
Jack said Israel was his first child.