A woman and three children died in a house fire on Stone Square, Bootle, early on Tuesday. Crews were called at 3.38am. A fifth person is in hospital.

A woman and three children died in a house fire in Bootle in the early hours of Tuesday.

Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service was called to Stone Square at 3.38am. Crews arrived seven minutes later and found a semi-detached house well alight. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus went in to search it.

They found four casualties in an upstairs bedroom, showing no signs of life. Two members of North West Ambulance Service’s Hazardous Area Response Team were then sent into the house, and confirmed that all four had died (Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service).

A fifth person was outside the house when crews arrived. They were taken into the care of the ambulance service and taken to hospital with burns.

The fire service has not named anyone involved.

What the fire service recorded

The service’s own account of the morning sets out the following:

  • 3.38am: the 999 call reached fire control and crews were alerted
  • 3.45am: the first crews arrived at Stone Square
  • six fire engines were in attendance at the height of the fire
  • eight firefighters in breathing apparatus searched the property and fought the fire with hose reel jets
  • two members of the ambulance service’s Hazardous Area Response Team were committed into the house alongside them

By the afternoon the main fire had been put out and crews were damping down, with two fire engines still at the scene (Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service incident record).

A joint investigation into the cause

The fire service and Merseyside Police are running a joint investigation to establish what caused the fire. No cause has been given.

Area Manager Kevin Longshaw said: “This is a devastating incident, and our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of those who have lost their lives and been injured. We will work closely with relevant colleagues to ascertain the cause of the fire, but in the immediate term, we again extend our sincere condolences to those affected by this tragic incident.”

Merseyside Police had not published a statement of its own on the fire on its news pages by Tuesday evening.

Where Stone Square is

Stone Square is a residential street in Bootle, in the L20 postcode at the southern end of Sefton (OpenStreetMap). It is about 13 miles from Southport. Bootle is in the same borough as Southport and Formby, but it is a different town, and it sits closer to Liverpool city centre than to the Sefton coast.

What it means for you

The cause of this fire is not known, so there is no specific warning to pass on. What the fire service says all year round is that a working smoke alarm is the thing that buys a household time at night.

Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s own advice is:

  • fit at least one smoke alarm on every level of your home, ideally on the ceiling in a hallway or on a landing
  • make sure the alarms can be heard from the rooms where people sleep
  • test them every week, and replace the alarms themselves every ten years
  • keep them out of kitchens and bathrooms, where steam sets them off; a heat alarm is the right device for a kitchen

The service says you are nine times more likely to die in a fire at home if you do not have working smoke alarms. Households with none may be eligible to have them fitted free, and the number for that is 0800 731 5958. The same line is used to arrange a check for an elderly friend, neighbour or relative.

If you hear a smoke alarm sounding in a neighbour’s house, the service’s advice is to call 999 and not to go in yourself.

Sources

This page will be updated as the investigation reports.