VAKACEGU Tuibua is counting his lucky stars after barely escaping a fire that destroyed the two-bedroom house he was living in at Lami Village Rd.
He said the fire started around 8am on Saturday.
“I was still sleeping when I felt a part of my hand burning,” he said. “It woke me up.
“The fire started in the room I was sleeping in and it spread so fast I couldn’t even find my way out so I pushed down a wall to run outside the house.”
He said once outside, he realised that his two cousins — Josh Vakacereivalu and Saimoni Sovui — were still sleeping inside one of the rooms.
“I rushed back in to get them and luckily they had woken up and were trying to find a way out as well,” he said.
He said his neighbours contacted both the fire station and the police who arrived at the scene in a matter of minutes.
“The fire had spread quickly all over the house and we couldn’t save anything.
“We are currently staying with my aunty and even though we lost everything, we are still thankful that no one lost their life.”
Meanwhile, an early morning blaze in Rakiraki destroyed a two-bedroom house around 4am yesterday.
Police spokeswoman Ana Naisoro said the house was empty when the fire started.
She said investigations continued to determine the cause of the two fires.
