JOHOR BARU: A mother of three died from suffocation when three shophouses along Jalan Senyum in Kampung Wadi Hana caught fire early Wednesday (Sept 13) morning.
Larkin Fire and Rescue Station operation commander Mohamad Faiz Suleiman said they received a distress call about a fire at 4.53am.
“We immediately deployed our assets, including five Fire Rescue Tender (FRT) vehicles, three Emergency Medical Rescue Service (EMRS) units, three Rapid Intervention Motorcycle (RIM) units, a Pajero and a Triton to the scene together with 49 firemen.
“The assets and firemen are from Larkin, Tebrau, Johor Jaya and Kempas fire stations,” he said here on Wednesday.
Mohamad Faiz added that when they arrived at the scene, there was a massive fire involving three double-storey shophouses in the same row.
He said that the first building, a shop with five rented rooms, was 70% burnt, while the second building, also a shop with five rented rooms, was 90% burnt.
“The fire also damaged about 65% of the third shophouse, which houses a shop and three rented rooms.
“At around 5.20am, our men rescued a family of four that had been trapped inside one of the burning rooms and immediately sent them to Sultanah Aminah Hospital to seek medical treatment as they had been suffocating due to inhaling smoke,” he added.
Mohamad Faiz, said however one of the victims, a 53-year-old woman, was pronounced dead by the hospital medical officer due to suffocation while her three children, a 21-year-old man, an 18-year-old man and a seven-year-old girl, were in stable condition.
He added that the operation ended at around 9.25am while the cause of the fire and estimated loss were still under investigation.
Meanwhile, Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Raub Selamat confirmed the family involved in the incident were foreigners.
