Authorities were blaming an electrical malfunction for a fire Tuesday morning near a garment factory that left 26 Phnom Penh families homeless.
Twenty houses in Chak Angre Leu commune, Meanchey district, burned down after a fire started by an electrical short circuit, Meanchey District Deputy Governor Em Sokleang said.
No one was injured in the blaze, which began around 10:30 am. Most residents were workers at a nearby garment factory, Em Sokleang said. They had strung electrical wires between their wooden houses, one of which shorted to start the fire.
Four fire trucks responded quickly to the fire, which was only one-half kilometer from a fire station. The blaze was extinguished by 11 am, Em Sokleang said.
“It is the second time there has been a fire recently in [Meanchey district], but this is much smaller than the first time,” Em Sokleang said, referring to a Nov 28 blaze that left 984 families homeless.
The government gave Tuesday’s displaced families 25 packets of Chinese noodles and four cans of fish, according to Em Sokleang.
The families plan to rebuild their homes, he said.
