BATU PAHAT: For many residents of Kampung Sungai Ayam, here, shouts of "Allahuakbar" were the first sign that something was not right earlier today.
It was then that they realised that a fire had begun, a blaze that would eventually see five houses razed to the ground.
The 3.30pm fire was believed to have begun at one of the houses at the back before spreading to other residences.
It is understood that the fact that the houses were built close to one another may have contributed to the ease in which the fire spread quickly jumped from one to another, with the five homes destroyed in less than an hour.
One of the victims, 46-year-old Norsidah Ismin, said she was shucking cockles when she noticed the acrid smell of something burning.
"I asked one of my children if one of our neighbours was burning rubblish, but then I saw the flames.
"I heard some of the residents shouting 'Allahuakbar' and then the flames became bigger. I screamed and ran to tell our neighbours and they called the Fire and Rescue Department," she said.
Norsidah said, because everything happened so quickly, she was only able to save her handbag, adding that some important documents were destroyed in the fire.
Another victim, Muhammad Amirul Azwan Mohd Nasrol, 21, said he realised his home was on fire when he saw plumes of smoke rising from that direction while he was returning from sending his brother to a religious school.
"When it happened, most of the residents were not at home, having gone out to work as fishermen," he said.
Batu Pahat fire station chief Ayub Majid said a distress call was received at 3.58pm.
He said 13 firemen, including some from the Penggaram station, were despatched to the scene.
They arrived some 15 minutes later, he added.
"The five houses were 85 per cent destroyed by the time the fire was put out. We are still trying to ascertain the cause of the blaze," he said, adding that no injuries were reported in the incident.