Eight children, mother die after roof collapses due to fire in Abbottabad

ABBOTTABAD: In a tragic incident, nine members of the same family were killed after the roof of their house collapsed in Abbottabad due to a fire caused by a short-circuit, Geo News reported Sunday. 

According to rescue officials, the roof of the kucha (mud) house collapsed in Abbottabad's Tahari village due to a fire after which nine family members were trapped under the rubble. 

Locals initially retrieved seven bodies from under the rubble while the rescue operation for two other family members was underway. Later, the bodies of all nine family members were recovered from the rubble. 

The deceased family members included a mother and eight children, added the rescue officials.

The Rescue 1122, along with three ambulances and locals made concerted efforts to extinguish the fire and rescue the residents, according to state-run APP.

Unfortunately, the wood and clay house quickly caught fire, impeding rescue activities.

The deceased persons were identified as the wife of Zakir, four daughters and four sons, including Hashim, Qasim, Hasan, and Sufyan, according to the state-run APP.

The community mourns the loss as authorities work to investigate the cause of the tragic incident and ensure the safety of other residents in the area.

In July this year, a deadly fire killed 10 members of the same family, including an infant and woman, when the compressor of their refrigerator exploded in a house in the Bhati Gate area of Lahore.

The deceased included a man, his wife, two other women, five children and a seven-month-old baby. Only one member of the family managed to escape the deadly fire by jumping off the building.

Rescue officials confirmed that the fire broke out due to an explosion in the fridge's compressor. They said the house had no ventilation to let the smoke out.