Two children and a woman have died in a fire in a flat in Cambridge.
More than 30 firefighters attended the blaze at a two-storey maisonette in Sackville Close in the early hours of Friday morning.
They recovered the two children but the boy and girl died in hospital. A woman in her 30s was pronounced dead at the scene, Cambridgeshire fire and rescue service said.
A man in his 30s managed to escape the flat before emergency services arrived. He had serious injuries and was taken to hospital where he remains in a critical condition.
Emergency services including paramedics, police and an air ambulance were called to reports of a fire at 1.08am on Friday.
An East of England ambulance service spokesperson said: “One woman had sadly died at the scene. One man with serious injuries was transported to Addenbrooke’s hospital together with an infant and an older child – both children in serious conditions.
“An infant from an adjoining property was also transported to Addenbrooke’s hospital for further assessment and care. The ambulance service would like to extend its deepest sympathies to all those affected by this tragic incident.”
Firefighters arrived to find smoke billowing from the ground and first floor of the maisonette and managed to stop the fire from spreading to neighbouring homes.
The area commander Stuart Smith said: “This is a devastating and deeply upsetting incident that will touch many people. Our thoughts are with the relatives, friends and neighbours of the family. It’s just heartbreaking.
“We know this will have a huge impact on the local community and our fire safety team was in the area visiting residents yesterday to provide fire safety information and reassurance and will be returning next week.”
An investigation has been launched to establish the cause of the fire.
