RIYADH: Two siblings were killed when a fire engulfed their room in a charity housing creche in Kharkhir town, Najran, on Sunday night.

The parents of the children — two-year-old girl and 18-month-old boy — were away attending a wedding when the incident happened, Ali bin Asir bin Al-Jarman Al-Shahrani, civil defense spokesman in Najran, said on Monday. “The children were alone and sleeping.”

"The Civil Defense teams responded at 11:20 p.m. and acted immediately to extinguish the fire but it was too late. The children had already died before being rescued,” he said.

The fire was sparked by faulty wiring, Al-Sharani said. “Children at this age would not know what to do even if they were awake when the tragic incident took place,” he added.