Two people die in Boxing Day house fires in England

Two people have died in separate Boxing Day house fires.

In the town of Litherland, Merseyside, a fire broke out in the first floor bedroom of a house just before 2.30pm. One person was pulled out of the house by firefighters but was later pronounced dead.

Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s area manager Gary Oakford said a second person was taken to hospital by paramedics. He added: “A joint investigation into the cause of the fire will be carried out in due course.”

As yet no details have been released about the victims.

Meanwhile, Derbyshire Police said a man died in a house fire in Normanton that started just before 1.45pm. The man has not yet been formally identified and the cause of the fire is still being investigated. A neighbour told our source said that  that the house belonged to a family and the husband had been home while the wife and children were out shopping. Detective Inspector Jim Bateman said: “We are very keen to hear from anyone who was in the area of Rose Hill Street between 11am and 1.45pm on Thursday, who has information about this incident.

“Anyone with dash cam or CCTV which covers the area, who hasn’t already come forward, is asked to contact officers if they believe they may have footage which will be helpful to our investigation.”