JOHOR BARU: An 84-year-old man died in a fire that engulfed three terraced houses in Taman Permas Jaya, Masai, in the early hours of Saturday (March 15).
Johor Jaya Fire and Rescue Department operations commander Saifulbahri Mahpop said the department received a distress call at 12.13am and dispatched fire engines from the Johor Jaya, Pasir Gudang, and Mount Austin stations.
He added that the first responders arrived at the scene within six minutes.
"Upon arrival, firefighters found three houses on fire, each measuring 20x15 feet. They used one initial attack line and two 100-foot hose lines to douse the flames, drawing water from a fire hydrant and the engines' pumps. The fire was brought under control by 2am and fully extinguished by 3.09am," he said in a statement.
The victim, identified as Md Aris Samar, was found with 70% burns on the upper floor of house number 57.
"He was pronounced dead at the scene by a medical officer from the Health Ministry.
"His daughter, Hamizah Md Aris, 57, and her three children—Hadirah Affendy, 16, Ezzatty Hazrina Affendy, 18, and Ezzatty Haida Affendy, 21—managed to escape unharmed," he added.
The fire caused significant damage, with house number 57 suffering 80% destruction, while the neighbouring houses, numbers 55 and 59, sustained 20% damage each.
A total of 33 personnel and multiple fire engines were deployed, including three fire rescue tenders (FRT), one emergency medical rescue service (EMRS) unit, one forensic unit, one PBS fire engine, and an X-Trail vehicle.
In another incident, a car crash on the Senai-Desaru Expressway resulted in a vehicle being engulfed in flames at KM11.3 near Ulu Tiram at around 3.33am.
Saifulbahri said that a car veered off the road and caught fire, with approximately 80% of the vehicle being burnt.
"Firefighters from the Johor Jaya station arrived at the scene at 3.51am and launched efforts to extinguish the blaze. One victim was found trapped in the driver’s seat.
"The fire was brought under control by 4.10am, and operations concluded at 5.17am. A total of 12 firefighters were involved in the operation, using one FRT, one EMRS unit, and one forensic unit.
Johor Baru South OCPD Asst Comm Raub Selamat confirmed that police had received reports on both incidents and stated that an official statement would be issued later.
