It was a tragic moment for residents of the Madina Quarters community in Bauchi state on Sunday 17 March 2024 when two children, identified as Zainab Bashir Muhammad (Hibba) and Ummu Salma Bashir, aged 7 and 5, lost their lives in a fire disaster that razed down their house.
The incident which was said to have happened near Barden Gabas Primary School, near the Tirwun Quarters, within the Bauchi metropolis, occurred just days after two persons lost their lives in a fire outbreak at Maraku village in Zubuki Ward, Itas/Gadau Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
According to eyewitnesses, the fire outbreak began at about 11:00 am on Sunday March 17, revealed that the children’s mother had locked inside the house while she reportedly went out, possibly to the market.
Sadly, the house was engulfed by fire before her return.
It was gathered that the joint efforts by the residents and state fire department, which visited the scene to contain the fire, in order to rescue the children, failed due to the thick smoke and severity of the flames.
As of the time of filing this report, however, details remain sketchy as to what caused the inferno but a resident in the Madina Quarters, Usman Abdullahi (Dan Usmanu), who spoke to newsmen at the scene, disclosed that it was unusual for the mother to leave her children locked in the house.
Meanwhile, the children have since been buried in accordance with Islamic rites.
