TRAGEDY: Kalksteenfontiein sisters Janecke Gross, 4, and Nicolia Gross, 7, died in fire after being locked in wendy house by mom
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TWO Kalksteenfontein sisters tragically died in a fire on Monday evening when their mother allegedly locked them up inside the wendy house and left with their baby sibling.
Their grandmother is believed to be fighting for her life in hospital after trying to save little Janecke Gross, 4, and seven-year-old Nicolia Gross, from the fire.
When the Daily Voice arrived at the gutted residence in Soetkop Street, community members were cleaning the debris. The wendy house which was situated in the front yard was burned to the ground and the ouma’s house was blacked out from the fire .
Hartseer neighbour Mauricia Sondagh said the incident happened after 7pm when her son went to call the girls for supper as they used to eat by her and that was when he noticed the fire.
Mauricia says: “My son immediately ran back and said ‘mummy kom help, dit brand daarso’. When I got next door the flames were coming from inside the wendy house and was coming out by the door. I called all the neighbours for help.
"The ouma was at the opposite neighbour's house. When she saw what was going on she ran inside to try and save them but the entire place was full of uncontrollable flames.
"They had to get the ouma out through the roof because there was no way out for her. There was nothing anyone could do, say the neighbours.
"I kept shouting ‘die kinders’ because I knew they were inside.”
The Daily Voice learned that the girls mother is on drugs and their father is in jail and had not yet returned home.
However, according to Mauricia, this is not the first time she locked the children in the wendy house alone.
She adds: “When the community called the mother to say her place was burning, she just threw the key and kept walking. She never came to check and till now we haven’t seen their mother yet.”
Another neighbour said they could not hear if the minors were shouting because the kerk mense was busy with sound check.
Jermaine Carelse, Spokesperson for the City’s Fire & Rescue Service said the bodies of the minors were discovered beneath the debris and were certified by medical personnel.
He reports: “The City’s Fire & Rescue Service was alerted at around 7.10pm of a dwelling alight in Soetkop Street.
"Crews from Epping and Bellville were dispatched to the scene and found two informal structures alight.
"By 8.30pm, firefighters managed to extinguish the fire that destroyed two informal structures and partially damaged two formal dwellings.
"The scene was handed over to the South African Police Service to investigate the circumstances around the incident.”
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said the circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation and the cause of the fire is yet to be determined.