Fire kills three children, two siblings and a cousin, in Sabah squatter blaze

KOTA KINABALU – Three children died after a fire tore through a floating squatter settlement of around 202 houses here early on Sunday.

The Sabah Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) confirmed the victims were two siblings and their cousin.

The children were named as Mohd Asrul Abdullah, 6, and his sister Nana, 4, along with their cousin Nurfarahdilah Mohd Tajihah, 8.

All three had been reported missing before firefighters found their bodies burnt beyond recognition.

JBPM Sabah director Mohd Pisar Aziz said the blaze broke out at about 1.30am at Kampung Lok Buta, a non-permanent floating settlement, and destroyed an estimated 202 houses.

“Firefighters managed to stop the fire from spreading to nearby areas and extinguishing and overhaul work is under way,” he said in a statement.

He said crews used an offensive firefighting technique, drawing water from an open source and created a fire break by demolishing four houses.

Pisar said the exact number of houses affected and the final victim count were still being verified and that updates would be issued as they came in.