A woman has been arrested after a house fire in Wolverhampton on Friday claimed the lives of two young boys, aged one and three, West Midlands police have confirmed, in what they are calling 'a truly tragic incident' - which is police-speak for 'this is really, really bad.'
Emergency services arrived at the property in the south of the city around 8:30pm on Friday, with firefighters, police, and ambulance crews all piling in. Firefighters managed to pull the two children from the blazing end-of-terrace house, but despite 'advanced life support' efforts from ambulance crews, both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Two other children and a woman were already outside when help arrived, and apparently didn't need hospital treatment - small mercies in an otherwise grim situation.
The woman, described as being in her 30s, was arrested on suspicion of causing or allowing the death of two children and remains in custody. Police have cordoned off the house, which was extensively damaged, while they work out what started the fire.
Forensic officers were spotted entering the property on Saturday morning in protective gear, because nothing says 'we're taking this seriously' like people in white suits. Sky News reported scorched walls and two ground-floor windows blackened with smoke and left open, presumably to let the bad news air out.
Officers are doing door-to-door inquiries and reviewing CCTV footage from the area. The cordon is expected to stay up for a while, just in case anyone was thinking of having a barbecue on the crime scene.
DCI Kylie Westlake, from the West Midlands police public protection unit, said: 'This is a truly tragic incident and our thoughts remain very much with those who loved the children who have been lost. We understand the shock and distress this awful incident will have caused to many people and we are working at pace to ascertain exactly what has happened.' She added that while they'd appreciate people not speculating, they'd also appreciate anyone with information to come forward.
West Midlands fire service noted they arrived within five minutes of receiving reports, which is fast, but unfortunately not fast enough. 'Our thoughts are with the children's loved ones and all those impacted by this heartbreaking incident,' they said, in a statement that probably didn't need to be written but was anyway.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 or via live chat, quoting log 5640 of 24 April. Or, you know, just don't set fires that kill children.