A woman and her son were burnt to death in their bid to douse a bushfire at Betini in Siddhicharan Municipality, Okhaldhunga, on Monday.

According to the District Police Office in Okhaldhunga, Punya Maya Dhamala, aged 55, and her 15-year-old son Kanchan Dhamala died on the spot.

The tragic accident happened as the victims attempted to save a patch of thatch in their field near Haribole Community Forest.

Police Inspector Balistar Singh said that the mother was trapped in the fire first and the son died in his attempt to rescue the mother.

In Rupandehi, a fire broke out in a warehouse of motor parts at Narayanpantha in ward 11 of Butwal Sub-metropolis, completely destroying the warehouse belonging to local Prijam Shrestha on Tuesday morning.

Shrestha said that he got a call from his neighbor at around 4:30 am saying his warehouse was on fire.

“Due to flammable goods such as engine oils, tires, and batteries, among other things, it took more than two hours to bring the fire under control. All the stored goods were destroyed,” said Shrestha.

Mohan Prasad Bhatt, spokesperson at the Rupandehi District Police Office, said that the cause of the fire is not known and that it took four fire engines to extinguish the fire. The loss has been estimated at around Rs 19.6 million. Further investigation into the case is going on, said Bhatt.

In Dailekh, a fire destroyed three shops at Naya Bazaar in ward 1 of Narayan Municipality on Tuesday. The fire broke out from a vehicle workshop and destroyed two other shops.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Sunil Dahal, properties worth around Rs1 million were destroyed in the incident. Security personnel from the Nepal Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force and local residents controlled the fire after an hour.

Meanwhile, in Sindhupalchok, Helambu Rural Municipality in a notice has announced a reward of Rs50,000 for anyone providing information along with evidence of arson in forests or any activities that could cause forest fires.

Nimgyalzen Sherpa, chairman of the rural municipality, said that the notice was issued on April 30, and so far their efforts have been found effective as there has been no incident of fire or forest.

“After announcing the reward and strict punishments, people have become more careful than ever. Everybody thinks twice while burning fire outside. So far, nobody has come to claim any reward, and no incident of fire has been reported after the announcement,” said Sherpa.