TUMPAT: Six families were left only with the clothes on their backs after six wooden houses in Kampung Laut here were destroyed in a fire this morning.
Kota Baru zone Fire and Rescue Department chief Syobirin Abdul Kadir said no casualties or injuries were reported in the 10.45am incident.
Syobirin said 36 firefighters were deployed to the scene after the department received a distress call at 10.50am.
“The houses were almost destroyed when our men arrived at the scene.
“They took about 35 minutes to put out the fire from spreading to other houses nearby,” he told reporters, adding that they managed to save 13 other houses.
He said the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
One of the victims, Nur Arisha Abdullah, 17, said she was at her workplace, about 100m from the scene, when her friend alerted her about the fire.
“I rushed home but it was already too late.
“My rented house was already engulfed in flames.
“However, I was glad that my parents and six siblings were not at home when the fire broke out.
“They have gone to Kota Baru to visit a relative,” she said.