A fire recorded this Saturday morning in the La Arreaga sector, Cristo de Aranza parish, claimed the lives of a man and his little six-year-old daughter.
The victims were identified as Harold Castillo (47), an evangelical pastor, and the minor Eleana Castillo.
The accident occurred at approximately 6:30 am in the family home. According to preliminary reports from the Maracaibo Fire Department, a short circuit in an air conditioning unit would have started the flames, which spread quickly through the property.
Neighbors’ stories indicate that Pastor Castillo, upon noticing the fire, entered the house in a desperate attempt to rescue his daughters. He managed to save his eldest daughter, Anna Castillo (12), but when trying to return for little Eleana, both were trapped by the density of the smoke and the intensity of the fire.
The surviving teenager was helped by those present and rushed to the Burn Unit of the Coromoto Hospital. His state of health is reserved, given that he has serious burns on a large part of his body.
Zulia state media reported that members of the Maracaibo Fire Department, in conjunction with police commissions, are carrying out the corresponding investigations to confirm the technical causes of the incident that has shocked the religious community and the inhabitants of the sector.
