Two children escape death

 TWO children narrowly escaped death when three houses caught fire on Sunday at a village outside Mt Hagen.

The incident took place at around 4pm at Ketilkuimb village, a few kilometres outside the city.

The two children, who were aged between five and seven, were alone at home after returning from swimming.

The homes and properties belong to the Moge-Eltimb clan in Mt Hagen. Spokesman Magani Kunjil described it as shocking. He said in the highlands, a home was an important asset.

“The two children could have been burnt but luckily some people managed to rescue them,” Kunjil said. 

He said they did not know what caused the fire and called on the provincial disaster office to assist the families affected.

Petrus Mek, who lost his properties in the fire, said his poultry house and stock feed were gone.

Provincial disaster coordinator Pais Kar said his office was aware of the accident but needed funding to assist the people.

He called on the people to take extra precautions because disasters could happen at any time.