Bloemfontein – A 19-year-old woman was arrested for child neglect after her 3-year-old daughter burnt to death in a shack in Hennenman on Wednesday, Free State police said.
"The child was burnt to ashes," spokesperson Malebo Khosana said.
He said the child was left alone in the shack at the time of the incident.
"The mother's 17-year-old sister left the child alone when she went to school at about 07:00."
[...]
They called the fire brigade which arrived after the shack had already burnt down.
"Onlookers told the police that no one was aware a child was trapped inside as the fire was fiercely ravaging the shack."
The discovery of the child was only made when the girl arrived back from school.
Paramedics and mortuary personnel were then called to the scene.
"The charred body of the child was retrieved from the ashes. The body was burnt beyond recognition."
The mother was fetched from her boyfriend's house in Hennenman and police arrested her.
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