A fire in the garage of a house in Hunter street in Highlands, Johannesburg has left a father and his three little girls deceased.
The cause of the fire is at this stage not known, but it seems that the garage had been converted into a storage area.
The family of five were asleep in their home when the fire allegedly started. When ER24 paramedics arrived at the scene, the mother was sitting on the side of the road being seen to by the JHB Berea Firemen. She was in an absolute state of emotional shock. Her husband and three daughters were lying in front of the house, and they were not breathing. Paramedics immediately assisted the fire and rescue workers with resuscitation efforts on the four people, but sadly, a while later they were declared deceased at the scene. The little girls appeared to be aged between the ages of 3 and 6 years old.
Paramedics explained that the wife had suddenly woken up and had tried to rouse her family, but to no avail. She had managed to get her three children outside and was found trying to bring her husband out when fire and rescue services arrived at the scene.
It is believed that they may have passed away due to smoke inhalation, as their bodies were not severely burnt.
The woman was taken to hospital for further treatment.
The local authorities will need to investigate the cause of the fire.
Vanessa Jackson, ER24
