Four siblings die in Lancashire house fire

by Michael Penkman. Published Mon 09 Jan 2012 11:27

Reece Smith, 19

A time for celebration turned to tragedy after four siblings died in a house fire on their mother's birthday.

Fire crews were called to a converted bungalow in Lancashire at 11:30pm on Sunday (8 January) after reports of a blaze.

Reece Smith, 19, four-year-old twins Holly and Ella Smith and Jordan Smith, two, were later pronounced dead at Royal Preston Hospital.

Their mother Michelle Smith, 36, was rescued unscathed from the inferno on Lytham Road, Freckleton, by firefighters.

There was no visible damage to the front of the property, however it is believed that some of the casualties were taken from a small room in the upstairs at the rear of the property.

The scene has been cordoned off while forensic officers begin their investigations.

A joint investigation has now been launched by fire and police chiefs, who have yet to determine the cause of the fire.

Det Supt Andy Murphy, of the Force Major Investigation Team, said: "This is an absolutely tragic incident and our thoughts are with the family at this very sad time.

"We believe that there had been a number of people at the address during the course of the evening and we will be speaking to several of those people throughout the day to try and establish what happened.

"If anyone else has any information that they believe could assist the investigation, I would ask them to call us."

Police refused to comment on whether there was a party at the bungalow.