Dansoman Fire Killed Granny

A 95-year-old woman was burnt to ashes when fire razed a three-bedroom self-contained house at Dansoman SSNIT Flat area, adjacent Chriz View Hotel, early Sunday morning. A man and his wife as well as occupants of the house who also sustained injuries were rushed to the Korle Bu teaching hospital for treatment. The old woman, yet to be identified, was said to have been trapped inside her room when the fire started around 3:20am Sunday morning, according to police reports. An eyewitness told DAILY GUIDE that the house was occupied by Harry Owusu, owner of the house together with his wife and 95-year-old mother. They were all asleep when the fire started around 3:30am Sunday morning. Harry Owusu and his wife were rescued in time by the fire service personnel who visited the scene, but unfortunately the old lady who was believed to be asleep when the fire broke out was burnt into ashes before she was seen. Meanwhile, when the paper contacted Chief Superintendent Frank Adufati, the Accra Regional Crime Officer, he said the charred body of the old woman had been deposited at the Police Hospital morgue for preservation while investigations continue. He said when the police got to the scene shortly after the fire outbreak, the number of occupants of the house was unknown until Mr. Owusu and his wife were rescued. They then revealed that the old lady was trapped in one of the rooms but it was too late to save her. The man and wife also sustained severe injuries and were rushed to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital for treatment. The Deputy Public Relations Officer of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Billy Anaglatey described the incident as pathetic and said the cause of fire has not been established yet but investigations are ongoing to ascertain it. He revealed that two fire tenders were used in putting out the fire which started around 3:20am when everybody was asleep. It took about an hour for the fire personnel to put out the fire. He urged owners of houses to create more escape routes in their homes for future events of fire outbreaks. More often, owners only leave one escape route in a house containing more rooms and when there is any fire outbreak, it becomes difficult to save victims who get trapped. He said fire could start at the entrance of a house, so there is the need to always create more escape routes in case of such eventualities.