Three die in two fires

AMMAN — Three people, including two Syrian children, died in two unrelated fire incidents in Amman and the Zaatari Refugee Camp late Saturday night, official sources said on Sunday.

Two Syrian children, aged two and three, were burnt to death in their trailer at the Zaatari camp in Mafraq, some 80km northeast of Amman, in a fire that was caused by a candle, a senior Civil Defence Department (CDD) official said.

“The fire that erupted at 8:20pm destroyed the entire trailer, two tents next to it and also resulted in the injury of the children’s father,” the CDD official told The Jordan Times.

He said initial investigations indicated that “a lit candle fell on the floor and caused the fire.”

“This is the initial cause of the fire, and we are currently questioning people residing near the trailer and sweeping the fire area,” the CDD official added.

Also on Saturday, a 78-year-old woman with physical and visual disabilities was burned to death in a fire at her home in the capital’s Marka suburb, a CDD statement said.

The fire, which started at 9:40pm, gutted the room the woman was in, a second source said.

“CDD firefighters managed to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading to the rest of the house,” the official said.

He added that the room did not have any heating devices in it and the source of the fire remains unknown.

A committee was formed to investigate the blaze, the source said.