Fire razes home, family killed

JAKARTA: A family of four died early on Wednesday morning when a fire razed their house in Bekasi, West Java, Antara reported.

The victims were identified as Cang Kim Him, his wife Tuang Muk Ha and their daughters, two-year-old Beby Pangesti and five- month-old Lia.

Neighbors said that the fire started at about 2 a.m. in Cang's bedroom, perhaps because of an electrical short. They claimed to have attempted to wake the family, but failed to do so.

The neighbors called the fire station, and although firefighters managed to extinguish the fire an hour or so after they arrived at the scene, the house burned to the ground, along with the family inside.

The bodies of the victims have been sent to Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital in Central Jakarta. Meanwhile, police have begun investigating the case. --JP