Youngsters rescued from fire

By JIMMY KALEBE
TWO young boys are lucky to be alive after a fire at 5-Mile in Lae yesterday razed a building yesterday.
The younger of the two boys, who was sleeping, was rescued by his father.
The older one ran out when the fire started.
The recently built double-storey building cost K450,000, according to owner John Pangua, from Togoba in Western Highlands.
It had two homes and a store on the top floor were razed with fire.
Pangua said more than K90,000 worth of store goods and more than K50,000 worth of personal belongings were lost in the fire that started at around 10am in the morning.
The building was opened only last Saturday, Pangua said. Pangua said he had paid for the building with money he had saved as a security guard.
The store was rented by an expatriate.
“I was out in Lae doing my banking when I got a call from my wife saying that our family home and the entire building were all gone in the fire, together with all our belongings,” Pangua said.
The other house in the building was also rented to an expatriate.
“Luckily my grandson who was sleeping in the room was rescued by his father, who is my son, while the other who was not sleeping ran out when the fire started,” Pangua said.
Morobe police commander Supt Alex N’Drasal could not be reached for comment and neither could PNG Fire Service, Lae office Chief Supt Bal Kena.