By REGINALD KANYANE
A candle may have sparked the fire, which killed an elderly man in Lokgabeng village, near Mokgareng in Taung. The charred body of Mabula Samuel Gabonewe (79) was found by his granddaughter, Kealeboga Sekgetho (45) lying unresponsive in his house on Monday morning.
“We found our grandfather lying unresponsive in his house. However, we could not determine whether the fire was caused by a candle or not. As a family, we are downtrodden by the atrocity.
“We are still waiting for the post-mortem to determine the cause of his death. He was intensively burnt and we will talk about funeral preparations after we have received autopsy results,” Sekgetho said.
Meanwhile, the North West police spokesperson in Dr Ruth Segomotsi cluster, Sgt Tryphosa van Rooyen said: “The Taung police are investigating an inquest after it was reported on Monday that an elderly male was found lying unresponsive in his house.
“On arrival at the scene, the police found the elderly man, who was identified as Mabula Samuel Gabonewe by his granddaughter. Initial investigation of the scene indicated that the bedroom of the house had burned.”
Van Rooyen said the cause of death, as well as the cause of the fire, has not been established yet, but an investigation continues.
The Guardian 