House fire in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture: Couple in their 70s in wheelchair killed; perhaps it was too late to escape

On the afternoon of the 12th, the interior of a house in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture was burnt out, and a couple in their 70s who lived in the house were found dead in the entrance hall, sitting in a wheelchair. According to the police, the area near the kitchen was so burnt that the fire may have started from there, and the police are looking into the details of the situation, thinking that the two people may have been unable to escape from the fire.

According to the police, just before 4 p.m. on the 12th, a relative reported that ``two people were dead at the front door'' of the residence of Mr. Hayashi Fujisawa (74) in Katsuho-cho, Nagaoka City.

When the police and fire department arrived, they found Mr. Fujisawa and his wife, Masae Fujisawa (71), both sitting in wheelchairs, dead at the entrance of the residence.

The couple were both disabled from the lower part of their bodies and used wheelchairs, and were regularly visited by helpers, but when they visited around 3:30 p.m. on the 12th, there was no response, so relatives told They called and found two people at the entrance.

According to the police, the house was a one-story wooden building, and there were signs of fire in multiple rooms, with the kitchen area being particularly burnt and indicating that the fire may have started there.

According to the police, there were no obvious injuries or burns, and they are investigating the cause of death and other details, considering that the two may have been unable to escape from the fire.

My deceased husband's brother: ``I can't help but wish he would contact me soon.''

In an interview with NHK, the husband's younger brother of the deceased couple said, ``My older brother was in an accident when he was young and became paralyzed in the lower part of his body, so he used a wheelchair for a long time.My older brother's wife also worked... I heard that the lower body was disabled due to this incident.Yesterday, I received a call from the bathing care helper that the couple had been using, and when I rushed to the house and unlocked the door, I saw two people in wheelchairs near the entrance. I found him dead in the room.The inside of his room was on fire, so I can't help but wish they would have called me right away when the fire broke out.I want to know why this happened. ” he said.

Neighboring residents: ``Tears of frustration''

A man in his 70s who lived in the neighborhood of the deceased couple said that they had been in contact with each other by regularly delivering vegetables from their home garden to the couple, and that he had met the woman last week as well.

The man said, ``The deceased woman greeted me when I was taking out the trash, and seemed cheerful.She was in a wheelchair, so I felt like she couldn't have escaped quickly, and when I heard the news that she had passed away, I was so frustrated that I cried.'' has appeared,” he said.