Two children die in pre-dawn house fire in Arunachal’s Tezu

Two siblings aged eight and 15 were killed after a fire tore through a residential colony in Tezu, the headquarters of Arunachal Pradesh’s Lohit district, early December 17, raising fresh concerns over fire safety in ageing government quarters.

The blaze broke out around 3.30 am at Peon Colony, where flames rapidly engulfed three old residential structures. Police said the nature of the buildings allowed the fire to spread quickly, leaving the occupants with little chance to escape. The two children were charred to death inside their home.

Fire brigade and police teams reached the area around 4 am and managed to contain the blaze, preventing it from spreading to nearby houses, officials said.

Confirming the incident, Lohit superintendent of police Thupten Jamba said a case had been registered at Tezu police station. “The bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination for identification and completion of legal formalities,” he said.

Police said it was “too early to ascertain the cause of the fire”. The parents of the children have been called in to identify the bodies, and further investigation is under way to determine how the fire started.

Residents of the area said several of the quarters are decades old, highlighting the risk posed by outdated structures and poor fire preparedness in residential colonies across the region.