Baby killed in fire after mother left her alone to go to post office

TAMPIN: A mother's decision to leave her 10-month-old baby alone at home while she made a quick stop at the post office came back to haunt her, after the infant was killed in a fire.

Tampin deputy OCPD Deputy Supt Ahmad Pilus Zainal said the 31-year-old mother had put her baby to sleep in an electric cradle at their home in Kampung Bangkahulu and told a neighbour to keep an eye on her while she went to the Gemas post office.

"The mum left her baby at home around 10.30am and told a neighbour to keep watch in case the baby wakes up.

"However, the mother later received a call from the neighbour and was told that her house was ablaze," he said, adding that a policeman on duty at the Gemas police station also received a call of the fire from a member of the public around 11.50am.

DSP Ahmad Pilus said the mother immediately rushed to their rented home and saw that the house was ablaze.

"Her baby had also died in the incident," he said adding that her husband was on duty at the Syed Sirajuddin Army camp when the fire broke out.

He said the Fire and Rescue Department was investigating the cause of the blaze.

"For now, we have classified the baby's death as Sudden Death.

"We are still probing if the fire was an act of arson or caused by other factors," he added.

The victim's remains have been sent to the Tampin Hospital for a post-mortem. - Star