GIRL FIGHTS FOR LIFE AFTER MYSTERY FIRE
Forensics to check scene
A NINE-YEAR-OLD Soweto girl is fighting for her life at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic hospital after she was burnt during a fire at her grandmother’s house.
She was injured when she tried to find an escape path through the dining room.
The fire broke out at the family home in Senaoane on Tuesday night while the family was sleeping.
Her grandmother, Goodness Thwala, and her fiveyear-old grandson were treated for smoke inhalation.
Thwala said she was awoken by people screaming outside.
“Before the fire started, I switched off the lights and checked if the windows were closed. I did not see anything suspicious.”
Thwala said they did not use a heater or a paraffin stove. “I have no idea what started the fire because only the top half of the dining room was burnt.
“The rest of the house is stained with smoke and dampness because neighbours used buckets of water to stop the fire,” Thwala said.
Her granddaughter was admitted to hospital where she is being treated for burn wounds to her face, hands, head and back.
Sabelo Thwala, Goodness’s son, said: “I stay in the room outside. I was also sleeping when the neighbours woke us up.
“When we got into the house through the kitchen door the curtains and couches in the dining room were on fire.
“Only the top half of the dining room was burnt and we find that very confusing.”
The family’s neighbour, Elizabeth Nhlapho, said: “I was sitting with my son watching television. He told me he heard something crack, so he went to look outside.
“That is when he saw the fire and called me. We called out their names to wake them up.”
Captain Mpande Khoza from Moroka police station said: “I advised them to come to the police station and open a case. We will send our forensic experts to the house.”