A search for a place to sleep ended in tragedy for a 42-year-old man after the truck he was using as temporary shelter caught fire in Area 49, Lilongwe.
Kondwani Kaliyati had separated from his wife earlier this month and was looking for accommodation when his friend, Feroz Laher, offered him a flatbed truck to sleep in temporarily.
Kanengo Police Station spokesperson Macfarlen Mseteka said Kaliyati entered the truck at around 7pm on Tuesday after buying a candle and mosquito coil.
But about three hours later, the temporary shelter turned into a death trap.
The truck caught fire around 10pm while Kaliyati was still inside.
Mseteka said the flames spread to three vehicles parked nearby, destroying two tippers, registration numbers BS2485 and MZ6574, and a DAF truck, registration number TO9618.
A postmortem established that Kaliyati died from fatal asphyxia caused by carbon dioxide inhalation.
“Following the fire, Kondwani Kaliyati was burnt to ashes, and three vehicles were burned in the process,” said Mseteka.
Police have not yet established the cause of the fire.
