Two children die in house blaze

Two children, aged two and three, died when a fire engulfed a house in south Belfast.

Two women who were in the house and another child were taken to hospital suffering from burns and smoke inhalation. It is understood that the two children who died were not from the same family.

Their bodies were found behind a settee where they had crawled in an attempt to escape the blaze.

Neighbours were alerted to the fire in Delhi Parade off the Ormeau Road at around 11am by a woman's screams.

The fire appears to have broken out in the living room of the mid-terraced house and spread quickly, with the children trapped inside.

Local residents, trying to save the children, were beaten back by the flames.

Doctors at Belfast City Hospital where one of the women was detained said her condition was "comfortable" and she was still being assessed. The other child was taken to Belfast's Royal Hospital for Sick Children.

The house was gutted, with the downstairs living room appearing to have taken the brunt of the fire.

Forensic experts and fire officers are examining the debris of the house in the search for clues as to how the blaze started.

Senior Divisional Fire Officer Alex Withers said that at this stage he had "no reason to believe the fire was anything other than accidental". "