At around 3.25am on Wednesday, a fire broke out in a house at 48 Nguyen Tu Gian in Ngu Hanh Son District’s My An Ward.  At the time, 6 people were asleep in the house.

The damaged house after the fire

The house owner 46-year-old Nguyen Van Bay, his wife 39-year-old Nguyen Thi Ha, and their son 11-year-old Nguyen Van Song Toan, managed to run out of the house to safety.

However, the other 3 died of asphyxiation in the fire: Mr Bay’s daughter 18-year-old Nguyen Hien Ha Nhi, his sister-in-law 25-year-old Nguyen Thi Hoa from Quang Nam Province, and house maid 50-year-old Nguyen Thi Thu also from that province.

After receiving a report about the blaze from local residents, the city’s Department of Fire Fighting and Prevention immediately sent 7 fire engines and dozens of firefighters to the scene to prevent the blaze from spreading to nearby houses. 

The firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze within 30 minutes, but they could not save the lives of the three victims.

Vice Chairman Minh (3rd left) presenting 20 million VND to Mr Bay

The detailed cause of the fire is under investigation, but it is thought that an electrical short circuit was to blame.

The bodies of Ms Hoa and Ms Thu were later taken to their homes in Quang Nam Province for funerals.  The funeral ceremony for Mr Bay’s daughter was held in the city’s Funeral Home on Quang Trung on Thursday.

In the afternoon of the same day, Da Nang People’s Committee (PC) Vice Chairman Ho Ky Minh, along with some Ngu Hanh Son District leaders, visited Ms Nhi’s funeral and delivered their most sincere condolences to her family. 

To ease the deep sorrow of the families, the municipal PC presented 20 million VND each to the families of the dead.  In addition, the Ngu Hanh Son District PC donated 10 million VND to each of the families and covered the costs of their burial services.  The family of Ms Nguyen Thi Thu received an additional 10 million VND from the municipal PC due to her difficult circumstances.