TAWAU: Six families were left with only the clothes on their backs after an early Thursday (July 27) morning fire wiped out their homes in Tawau.
The fire broke out in one house while the residents, numbering about 30 in total, were asleep.
They were awoken by shouts of fire and managed to escape before the blaze, which spread quickly, engulfed their homes near Taman Damai, Jalan Damai at about 2.20am.
They were unable to salvage any of their belongings and documents, firemen said.
Tawau Fire and Rescue Department station chief Jemishin Ujin said there were no fatalities or injuries reported.
"So far, the fire only involved the loss of property," he said in a statement, adding that six semi-permanent houses were razed.
He said a distress call came in at 2.34am and 19 firemen in four fire engines were deployed.
Upon arriving at the scene, however, they found that the houses had already been destroyed.
Jemishin said his team immediately began operations to prevent the fire from spreading to other areas.
They were assisted by the police, Malaysia Civil Defence Force personnel as well as a technical team from Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd.
Operations ended at 4am, he added.
