Two children die in car fire

British police were today investigating what caused a fire in a parked car which killed two children.

The children, believed to be a brother and sister aged two and three, were discovered in a burning Vauxhall Cavalier in Reading, Berkshire, shortly after 6pm yesterday.

Firefighters pulled the youngsters from the car in Colmworth Close and managed to revive them briefly with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Berkshire Fire Brigade said.

But the children both died shortly after arriving at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading.

The identities of the deceased would not be released until formal identification had taken place, police said.

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: ‘‘The cause of the fire has yet to be established but a full investigation is under way.’’