A 37 year old pregnant mother and her 2 children have been killed by a fire outbreak in the private residence at Ohwim in the Bantama sub metro of the Kumasi metropolis.
The woman identified as Philomena Osei and her 2 kids aged 8 and 4 were reportedly burnt beyond recognition.
They got trapped in their 3-bedroom apartment.
“I heard the woman shouting for help,” a neighbour, Justina Owusu, said.
“By the time I stepped out, I realised the entire building has been engulfed by fire. Together with other residents, we called the [Ghana National] Fire Service but before they arrived, the three have been burnt to death.”
Some residents, however, suspect arson.
“This is not the first time it’s happening. Someone once set the back of the net of one of the rooms ablaze but it was detected quickly and quenched.
“So this one appears suspicious because how can two rooms catch fire at the same time,” a tenant, Sampson Mensah, said.
Speaking in an interview,the Assemblyman for Ohwim Hon. Erastus Ebo Boison said the fire is said to have started around 12 midnight. He said cause of the fire is yet to be known but personally suspect arson.
According to him, one of the deceased children aged 14 who managed to escape the fire told him all she saw was fire but was able to step out as she was sleeping in a different room.
Husband of the late who is said to be a bank manager of a rural Bank in Ashanti is said to have not been around at the time.
Meanwhile police and fire service personnel have commenced investigations into the issue.
