by Scott Waide and Sylvester Gawi – EM TV, Lae
As Mt Hagen recovers from a fire that destroyed eight shops late last week, Lae City has again been hit by another fire-related tragedy.
A young man is dead and his sister injured after a fire that gutted a family home in Lae’s China Town suburb in the early hours of this morning.
Eye witnesses said the fire started at about 2am and had, within three hours, consumed the entire building.
A Land Cruiser was used to break down the corrugated iron fencing before some of the residents were rescued.
About an hour later, 2T Trading on Eighth Street caught on fire. Fire fighters who arrived on the scene were able to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading to other parts of the Lae CBD.
These latest fires again bring on the question of the ability of the Papua New Guinea fire service in handling fire emergencies.
Since 2013, there have been eleven fire emergencies in Lae City. Brian Bell Home Centre, Pelgens and G4S all suffered serious losses.
