Fire destroys 25 houses in Taman Hock Ann

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 25 houses at a squatter area at Taman Hock Ann along Old Klang Road here were destroyed in a fire yesterday.
City Fire and Rescue Department operations chief Samsol Maarif Saibani said the department was alerted to the incident at about 7.40pm yesterday.
He said 25 wooden houses were completely razed by the fire but fire and rescue personnel managed to save more than 30 houses in the same vicinity.
He said that there were no casualties reported in the incident.
On whether water cuts in the area had hampered fire personnel, Samsol said that was not the case as supply in the area resumed at about 4pm.
"The fire was believed to have been caused by a short circuit," he said at the scene, adding that the department was still in the midst of investigating the incident.
Samsol added that the fire was completely put out at about 9.45pm.
"Some 80 firemen were deployed to the scene together with 10 fire engines and three water tankers from eight fire stations in Klang Valley.
"Among the problems faced was that the houses were built close to one another and strong winds resulted in the fire spreading quickly," he said.
The fire also caused a massive traffic jam along Old Klang Road heading to Kuala Lumpur.