Bexleyheath: Woman who died in house blaze phoned husband and shouted ‘fire, fire’ as flames engulfed property, says relative | UK News

A woman who died in a house blaze in southeast London phoned her husband from inside the burning property and shouted “fire, fire” before the line went silent, a relative has said.

The frantic call for help saw him race to the semi-detached terrace in Hamilton Road, Bexleyheath, on Thursday evening, where the building was engulfed by flames, according to his cousin, who gave his name as Jega.

He is said to be “impossible to comfort” following the tragedy, which claimed the lives of two women and an infant boy and girl, believed to be aged just four and one.

Around 40 firefighters in six engines attended the address to tackle the blaze.

Using ladders and breathing apparatus, crews managed to pull the adults and children from the property, but they were pronounced dead at the scene.

All the victims are understood to be related.

The family, originally from Sri Lanka, are said to have only moved into the house three months ago.

A man, thought to be the husband’s brother-in-law, is in hospital with non-life threatening leg injuries after jumping from an upstairs window.

The husband was also taken to hospital, but has since been released.

Speaking to Sky News at the scene, Jega said: “He (the husband) said he got a call from his wife, and she was just shouting and then the call ended. It went silent.

“She was shouting ‘fire, fire’.”

He added: “It is so sad. It is impossible to comfort him or to describe what he is going through.”

Describing the youngsters who died as “happy children”, he added: “It’s an absolute tragedy, you can’t prepare for these things, you never expect this to happen.”

Another cousin, Jay Kulam, said: “He got a call from his wife about 8.30 in the evening about the fire. He rushed back and tried to get in, police and everyone was here at the time.”

Builder and nearby resident Scott James, 44, said the house was “quickly engulfed in flames” as smoke blew on to the street, while a “distraught” man collapsed against a wall.

“The downstairs was on fire, and then the whole house went up. It was engulfed in flames. There wasn’t an explosion,” he said.

He said of the family: “I saw them yesterday and waved at them. I spoke to them just to say hello. It was just pleasantries. It is very sad to wake up this morning and hear they have perished.”

Ling Han, 36, who lives a short distance away, said her family heard “sharp screaming” coming from inside the house and her children told her “there was a big fire”.

She saw firefighters take two children out of the house and the emergency services try to save their lives.

“They tried really hard to do CPR. They never gave up. They tried to do CPR for the children,” she said. “I am just so sad because we could see people in danger and could not do anything for them.”

The cause of the fire is not thought to be suspicious and there have been no arrests, the Metropolitan Police said.

Detective Chief Superintendent Trevor Lawry said: “Our thoughts are with the family of the deceased, who have suffered such an awful and devastating loss.

“Our inquiries are ongoing and we will continue to work with our colleagues in the London Fire Brigade to fully understand the cause of this terrible incident.”

London Fire Commissioner Andy Roe said: “This is a truly terrible incident which is both sad and shocking.

“Our thoughts are with the family, friends and local community at this difficult time.”