No smoke alarms at Huddersfield house where blaze killed two boys

Logan Taylor, three, and two-year-old Jake Casey were rushed to hospital on Saturday afternoon after the blaze erupted but could not be saved.

Their mother and an older brother managed to flee the house in Alder Street before firefighters arrived.

Deputy chief fire officer Dave Walton said: “We can confirm that at the time of the fire, there were no working smoke alarms in the property.

“Further investigations are ongoing to determine the exact circumstances but we urge people to always have a working smoke alarm and to test it regularly.”

He added: “Whilst early indications are that the cause of the fire is not suspicious, investigations are ongoing and it may be some days before we have a conclusive cause of the fire.”

The fire was believed to have started in the front bedroom and a rescuer, thought to be a neighbour, tried to enter by climbing on a veranda at the back of the house.

The boys’ father also dashed to the house, which the family had moved into around six months ago, to try to help, neighbours said.

The family’s next door neighbour, who did not want to be named, said the mother was shouting, “Help me! Help me!”, crying and screaming for assistance.

“We saw the smoke everywhere, a man tried to climb up to help but there was too much smoke, you could not see anything,” she said.

“I asked the man, he said two children were still inside. Then the police and fire brigade came and they went inside.

“It’s really shocking, everyone is in shock. My children were upset.”

Family members have returned to the scene of the tragedy to leave flowers.

Fire crews will be in the area over the coming days offering fire safety advice and fitting smoke alarms where required.

West Yorkshire Police said the fire appeared to be a “tragic accident” but the investigation was continuing.

Neighbours said the mother could be heard shouting “Help me! Help me” after the blaze broke out.

One would-be rescuer was beaten back by the smoke and flames at the semi-detached home in and the toddlers were recovered by firefighters.

Next door neighbour Shaveta Sharma rushed home from work after a friend rang to say her neighbour’s house was on fire.

She arrived as the fire service got there as did the children’s father.

Ms Sharma said: “Within four or five minutes, one of the children, they brought him out. They were giving him first aid, CPR, they were really trying hard.

“I was just trying to reassure mum, she was proper panicking to see her child in that state.

“We were just praying to God at that time, the child should be safe.

“Within a couple of minutes they have controlled the fire. The other child, emergency services they treated that child in the cot. That’s what mum told me, one child was in the cot.

“They said they were treating him inside. They took 35 to 40 minutes in the house.

“It’s very, very tragic. A mum and dad lost their two children suddenly, it’s really awful.

“We were telling mum to calm down, she was stressed, crying, shouting. She came out of the house and she was screaming in the road.”

She added: “Everybody is really sad today, everybody is just quiet, not saying anything at all. We don’t know what to say to (the) parents.”

Family members have returned to the scene of the tragedy to leave flowers.

Local Labour councillor Amanda Pinnock, who was leafleting in the area on Saturday, said the community was in shock.

“It’s a tragedy,” she said. “It’s a very close-knit area in Fartown.”

She urged people to get a smoke alarm and to check them regularly.

“The fire service will come and fit them for free,” she said. “It’s crucial people get them.”