MOTHER KILLED, TWO CHILDREN AND A HUSBAND BADLY BURNT IN KEROSINE FIRE TRAGEDY IN MASALANI

BY ADOW JUBAT

A somber mood has engulfed a small village in Hara location of Masalani division, Garissa County, following a fire tragic that killed a mother of three and critically wounded 3 others members of the same family.

Mrs. Khadija Yussuf, 35, was pronounced dead on her away to Garissa referral hospital, after 7.30 fire incident on Wednesday night, which has also fatally wounded two of her children and her husband.

Confirming the tragic incidents, to the Frontier Leaks Ijara Sub-County administrator Mohamed Ahmed Dahir said the fire started after lantern the woman was lighting up exploded into a disastrous flame.

"The deceased struck a match stick to lighting up a kerosene lamp in front of her grass thatched Somali traditional house (Herio), soon she struck the match stick it caused leaping fire. We suspect what she was using as kerosene must have been inflammable liquid such as petrol and not paraffin", he said.

"When she tried to light up the kerosene lamp which we suspect she used to refuel with other inflammable like petrol instead of paraffin, exploded into flames which caught her clothes leading into her burning to death," he added.

He said, the children who were shocked after seeing their mother crying loudly out for help to the neigbours, while burning into balls of flames rushed to rescue her with their bare hands clutching on her burning clothes attracting the fire to spread to them.

He said" The children who fall victim to the fire were between the age of four and six and they were at the time clinging to their mother in a bid to safe her from the fire using their naked hands unaware of the danger they were posing to themselves",

He said fourth victim, the husband to the deceased and a father to the children who was seated some few meters from where the deceased (his wife) fell victim to the fire accident, in desperation rushed with the contain carrying the remains of the liquid that caused the fire and doused onto the burning family member, thinking that it was water that should help to extinguish the raging fire.

The administrator noted that Mohamed Abdullahi Olow, the husband to the deceased and the children caught in the fire sustaining severe burns as he was attempting to rescue his family members from the tragic fire," he said.

The Ijara sub-County administrator said as the local leaders they rushed to the village which is about 17KM from Masalani town, where they assisted in transporting the victims to Masalani sub-county hospital, they were later referred to Garissa and again to Nairobi.

The Sub-County administrator said the seriously burnt two children and their father were all referred to Garissa referral hospital in critical, where they attended briefly before gain refereed to Nairobi for specialized treatment since their fire wounds were very serious.

He said one month infant who was at the time sleeping inside the traditional hut survived the tragic incident noting that the County government will support the family with medical and burial bills.

He cautions locals to take precautionary measures when dealing with fire and inflammable noting that mix up where families use petrol as paraffin is the main causes of fire tragedy.

"I would like to appeal to our people to take extra caution when dealing with fire so that we avoid terrible incidents like this, let keep our children away from fire place or when lighting up kerosene lamp," he said.
In another incident in Mandera County over thirty families were rendered homeless, following a fire incident in Arabia town of Lafey Sub-County in Mandera County on Tuesday.

The fire that was caused by a strong wind spread to makeshift business premises in Arabia Township has reported to have destroyed property worth 3 million according to the area member of the County assembly Abdullahi Abdirahman.