Woman dies after huge fire breaks out at block of flats as police launch probe

07 January 2024 , 09:48

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Firefighters were left battling a blaze which has left one woman dead (Image: LNP)

A woman has been found dead in a block of flats where a fire raged through in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The woman in her 40s was pronounced dead at the scene inside the five storey Nisbet House in Hackney. Police investigations into the blaze are now underway, with the Met saying the cause of the fire is not currently believed to be suspicious.

The fire service confirmed the tragic news after its teams attended the blaze for over an hour.

Six fire engines and 30 firefighters battled the fire from 8.20am to 9.40am on Saturday, January 6, with a spokesperson since confirming they found one person dead while sweeping the property. The spokesperson said: "Sadly a woman has died following a flat fire in Hackney. Six fire engines and around 30 firefighters responded to a fire on Homerton High Street, in a building of five floors.

The Met Police are set to investigate the cause of the fire (LNP)

"Part of a ground floor flat was damaged by the fire. A woman was found in the flat, and sadly pronounced dead at the scene." Firefighters from across London, including those in Homerton, Stoke Newington and Leyton, were all drafted in to fight the east Hackney blaze which tore through the five storey block of flats.

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Further comments from the Met Police force confirmed the next of kin had been informed and that while an investigation is underway, foul play is not considered as a reason for the fire, Metro reported. A spokesperson for the Met said: "Her next of kin have been informed and our thoughts are with them at this difficult time. An investigation is under way to establish the cause of the fire. It is not believed to be suspicious."

Ewan Gleadow