TUMPAT: An 85-year-old woman was found dead inside her house, which engulfed in flames, at Kampung Bukit in Wakaf Bharu last night.
In the 7:30 pm incident, the body of the victim, identified as Halimah Awang, was found lying face down with burn marks on her body on the bathroom floor by a team of firefighters.
Her neighbour, who only wanted to be known as Mizi, is in his 40s, said he heard a loud clap of thunder before noticing the fire at the victim's house around 7.30pm.
"I immediately went to Mok Su's (the victim's) house upon arriving and fire was everywhere. I was told by her child who lived next door to her that her mother was still inside the house.
"I tried to find a way into the house by going around it, but the fire was getting worse. I attempted to break a few window panes while calling out to Mok Su, but there was no response," he said.
Mizi said that he and several other villagers were unable to do anything other than call the Fire and Rescue Department.
Wakaf Bharu Fire and Rescue station chief Nazah Nafi said a team of 19 firefighters was deployed to the scene after they received a distress call at about 8pm.
"Upon arriving at the scene, the team found that the fire had already destroyed 70 per cent of the house. At 8.37pm, the team managed to control the fire from spreading," he said.
He added that the body of the victim has been handed to the police, who then brought her remains to the Tumpat Hospital here.