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       HARIPUR: Two people were killed and four minor children suffered severe burns when the tents of gypsies caught fire in the limits of the Khalabat Township police station here on Sunday evening.

       Several animals perished in the incident were perished as well.

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       Police said gypsy families lived in 10 tents with livestock in the open fields of the Jaba Baseera village alongside the Tarbela Lake.

       They said on Sunday evening, a fire broke out during a windstorm before engulfing all tents and burning two adults and four children.

       The injured, including Shaukat Arbab and his cousin Hawaee Bibi, died on the way to the trauma centre, while four minor children were referred to burn centres in Peshawar and Abbottabad for tertiary care, according to police and hospital sources.

       Police said the fire also left 300 sheep, 10 donkeys and two mules dead, 200 sheep injured, and two tractors and six motorcycles damaged. Police said the cause of the fire was not known.

       However, villagers believed that the women were busy cooking food when a burning object landed on the hay stock stored outside the tents, causing the fire to start.

       Assistant commissioner (headquarters) Hamza Abbas supervised the firefighting operation and the shifting of bodies and the injured to the trauma centre. He said around 300 animals were affected by the fire, while more than 50 of them, including sheep, donkeys and mules, lost life.

       Mr Abbas said he had ordered an inquiry to ascertain the cause of the fire and assess the damage.

       Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2025