"There are so many things I want to remember. I raised them with my own hands, and they were such kind children..."

The grandfather, identified as A, struggled to speak as he mourned the loss of his elementary school-aged grandson and granddaughter, who died in a villa fire in Galhyeon-dong, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul.

Overcome by grief, he found it difficult to continue his words.

Meeting in front of the funeral altar set up at a funeral home in Eunpyeong-gu on July 9, the day after the fire that claimed the lives of the siblings, the grandfather teared up and said, "They were such well-behaved children..."

He expressed that the sorrow felt by the children's father, who had stepped out for personal business when the fire occurred, would be incomparable to anyone else's.

"I hope people do not view them as irresponsible parents who left their children behind," A said. "I hope people will join us in mourning this tragic accident."

As per the grandfather's request, the family, including the children's parents, endured their grief at the funeral home.

On the afternoon of July 9, the electronic display board inside the funeral home, which usually shows the names of the deceased, was turned off at the request of the bereaved family.

Visitors to the funeral home embraced the grieving family members, who were trembling and biting their lips to hold back their tears, and offered their condolences.

One mourner burst into tears, saying, "How could this happen to such young children?"

The deceased children were siblings, a second-grader and a first-grader in elementary school.

The tragedy has caused even more heartbreak as they were known to neighbors as a close-knit pair.

The family had moved into the villa where the fire occurred two years ago.

Police and fire authorities have been investigating the exact cause of the fire after conducting a joint inspection starting on the afternoon of July 9.

The police are focusing on the possibility of an electrical fire starting in the living room and have requested the National Forensic Service to examine home appliances, including the air conditioner.

(Photo: Provided by Eunpyeong Fire Station, Yonhap News)