A Soweto family is grappling with the loss of two siblings, Austin (5) and Siphiwe (18 months) Khumalo, who died in a house fire last week.

The news of the atrocious deaths of the two brothers in Doornkop, Gauteng, sent shockwaves through the community as residents slowly began to trickle in to offer their condolences to the bereaved family.

Family representative Bongani Makhubu says he was woken up by defying screaming for help from Nhlanhla Khumalo, the mother of the two boys, who was already outside shouting that the house was on fire.

He recalled how thick black smoke covered every part of the house as he tried to reach his grandchildren from the blazing fire.

“I came into the house and pushed the front door open, but the smoke was already thick, and knelt to the bedroom where the fire was coming from.

“And I went back outside to ask where the children were, and she said inside. I rushed back inside with a bucket filled with water, but I could not see. I came back outside and broke the windows.”

Neighbours armed with buckets and hose pipes came to assist in extinguishing the raging flames until the fire in the bedroom was put out.

“I found their bodies curled or backed up against the corner, so it seems the fire started at the door, which prevented them from going out. The older one, Austin, was curled back in the corner while the little one was near the corner of the bed, their tiny bodies burned by the flames.”

According to the emergency management services, preliminary investigations revealed that the mattress they were sleeping on caught fire from an unattended candle.

It is believed that the mother of the two boys claimed that she had left a candle on and fell asleep.

Makhubu, however, says that while they did not want to speculate, the family had unanswered questions and was left wondering how the young boys died.

He says the traumatic scene will haunt him for a long time. He described the boys as bubbly and full of energy.

“It is very painful. I regarded them as my kids. We’ve got memories of these kids, how we spoke, and their laughter.

“This yard was always full of kids because of Austin and his friends, it was a kid’s environment. It is very painful, and I am unable to explain it. We can’t ask why it happened, back or forth, in this scenario,” the emotional uncle recalls.

Soweto Urban News learned that the 22-year-old mother lived in the main house with her two children, using candles while it had no electrical wiring. It was revealed that she had a history of drug abuse and had allegedly removed the wiring.

Neighbour Johanna Phalane expressed shock, citing the horror she witnessed upon arriving. “What I found was horrible. I peeped through the window, and everything was burnt.

“I knew that there was no way they would have survived; my blood went cold, thinking of these kids. When I arrived, they had just been taken by the mortuary. I don’t know how I will sleep tonight.”

She had been at the Khumalo home since the incident and told the publication that the boys’ mother was not around when the fire started.

“If she was here, she would have felt or seen the fire and saved her children, but she was outside. These kids were still too young in that manner. I am distraught because children can’t burn like that, and she says she was here. She must be arrested,” she added.

The mother of the two boys told the publication she was not ready to comment. The Khumalo boys will be laid to rest this week.