House fire claims lives of two siblings in Arunachal

Itanagar, Dec 17 (PTI) Two siblings, aged 8 and 15, were charred to death in a fire that broke out in their house in Arunachal Pradesh's Lohit district on Wednesday morning, police said.

The incident occurred at Peon Colony in the district headquarters Tezu town around 3.30 am.

According to police, flames engulfed three residential structures, all of which were old quarters. The nature of the structures reportedly aided the rapid spread of the fire, leaving little time for escape.

Police said the fire brigade and police teams reached the spot around 4 am and contained the blaze, preventing it from spreading to nearby houses.

Confirming the incident, Lohit SP Thupten Jamba said a case has been registered at Tezu police station.

"The bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination for identification and completion of legal formalities," the SP said.

He added that it was too early to ascertain the cause of the fire.

The parents of the deceased children have been called for identification of the bodies. Further investigation is underway to determine the exact cause of the fire, police said. PTI CORR MNB