Firefighters rescued the little sister who was trapped on the balcony.

(Photographed by reporter Qiu Junfu)

[Reporter Qiu Junfu/Taipei Report] A fire broke out in an old apartment building in Xinyi District, Beishi, early this morning. Firefighters rescued a pair of younger siblings on the back balcony, but unfortunately, their father was burnt to a charred corpse.

After preliminary investigation by the police and firefighters, it was discovered that the 46-year-old deceased first woke up the younger sister and brother to take shelter on the balcony when the flames burst out. In fact, they could have escaped the catastrophe, but they turned back to save the cat, which may have caused them to be choked. The wife who was lost in the flames and went to South Korea is expected to rush back to China in the afternoon to deal with her husband's funeral.

According to police investigation, the deceased surnamed Lin and his wife were engaged in Korean clothing business in Wufenpu, Beishi City. They had an 11-year-old daughter and a 6-year-old son. The family of four lived on the fifth floor and the top floor of an old apartment building. The stairs are interconnected, and the son and daughter usually live together in Dingjia. A few days ago, the wife of the deceased went to South Korea to restock.

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At about 6 o'clock this morning, the fire department was informed that a fire broke out in the old apartment building at Lane 391, Section 3, Heping East Road, Xinyi District. Immediately dispatched 25 fire trucks, ambulances, and more than 60 personnel to rush to fight the fire. Firefighters arrived At that time, it was found that tongues of fire sprang out from the windows on the fifth floor, and the fire had spread to the top floor, and a lot of thick smoke was emitted, showing a full-scale combustion situation. Water lines were immediately deployed to put out the fire, and 13 residents were evacuated at the same time.

Firefighters rescued 2 people at the scene on the back balcony of the 5th floor, including a 6-year-old boy who was conscious, had no obvious trauma, and had normal vital signs; an 11-year-old girl who had bruised feet, was conscious, and had normal vital signs.

When the sister and brother were trapped, they were very panicked and kept shouting "Daddy is still in the room" to seek help from the firefighters. Unfortunately, after putting out the flames, the firefighters found the charred body of a man at the top gate of the fifth floor. Suspected to be the father of the child, the police took DNA to further confirm his identity.

Firefighters sent the little sister, who was still in shock, to the hospital for treatment. The police also notified the sister of the deceased's wife to rush to the hospital to appease the little sister.

According to the brothers and sisters, the father, who was making breakfast in the kitchen on the 5th floor, suddenly rushed to the 6th floor to wake them up and told them to run quickly, and took them to the balcony on the 5th floor to avoid the flames, and then turned back to save the cat.

The fire department stated that the younger brother was lucky to escape because he closed the door to block the flames and thick smoke. The entire fire was extinguished at 7 o'clock, and the decoration, furniture and sundries were burned, and the burning area was about 40 square meters.

At present, the preliminary investigation by the police and firefighters found that the fire started in the kitchen, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.