Eight-year-old boy dies in fire

Oct 17 2009

A boy has died and his teenage sister is critically ill after a house fire, firefighters have said.

The eight-year-old boy died in hospital following the fire in Ellacombe Church Road, in Torquay, Devon.

Five fire crews tackled the blaze at the house which broke out at around 10.30am on Saturday.

Eyewitnesses said the windows of the house were blown out and black smoke filled the sky.

The eight-year-old boy died at Torbay Hospital. A 15-year-old girl remains in a critical condition.

Five people were inside the property when the fire broke out, a mother, father and their two sons and daughter.

Neighbours helped three other family members escape from the house before firefighters arrived. They have also been taken to hospital for a check up.

One woman who lived on the street told BBC news: "People were trying to kick the front door down and I said lets go around the back and the mother was out of the window so they got a ladder and got the mum and dad out. Everyone was trying to help to do something."

Roads surrounding the area have been closed off and firefighters were continuing to damp down the fire.

Fire investigators and police are now trying to establish how the fire started, but it is thought there were no working smoke alarms in the house.