A fire claimed the lives of 10 members of one family, including five children, in a house in the Peruvian capital Lima, police report. This was reported by the BBC, writes UNN.
Details
The fire engulfed a house in the southern district of La Victoria early on Wednesday morning, General Oscar Arriola of the National Police of Peru told local media.
Five children aged between three and 15 died, as well as four adults aged between 29 and 72, and one other person whose age was not specified. Two injuries were also reported.
Police are investigating reports that the fire may have been set intentionally. Local media report that the family, which manufactured mattresses and owned electric motorcycles, had received threats and demands to pay money for "protection".
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According to the government news agency Andina, neighbors said that unknown individuals set fire to motorcycles parked outside the house, after which the fire quickly spread due to flammable materials used for mattress production.
As reported by Infobae, at the time the fire started at 03:00 local time (08:00 GMT), 17 family members were in the building, but seven of them managed to escape.
It is noted that the bodies of the victims were so badly burned that they could not be identified.
"Today, all of Peru falls silent in the face of a tragedy that plunges our nation into mourning," reads a statement from the National Police of Peru.
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