FORENSIC science officers have launched an inquiry to discover the cause of the house blaze which killed 13-year-old Jane Walmsley.

Scenes of crime teams went to the house yesterday and have sent samples to the laboratory as police and firefighters tried to piece together details of what happened in the house now ravaged by fire.

Acting Detective Inspector Joe Kellett from Blackburn CID said: "The fire seems to have started in the kitchen area at the back of the house. The three children all suffered from smoke inhalation."

He added: "There are no suspicious circumstances or indications of foul play. The mother has been interviewed by a police officer.

"We believe she was talking at a friend's house when the fire started."

Station Officer John Hinton from Accrington Fire Station was treated for smoke inhalation at Blackburn Royal Infirmary along with a woman neighbour.

He said: "When people die it is the worst part of the job for us and even more so when it is a child. It is tragic." He added: "We are still investigating the cause of the fire. One possibility we are looking into is that it could have been a chip pan fire but we cannot confirm this yet."

The kitchen was wrecked in the blaze and the rest of the house sustained severe smoke damage, which also spread to neighbouring homes.

A post-mortem examination is to be carried out on Jane's body.

Dawn's sister, Tina, of Hyndburn Road, Accrington, who was looking after Jane's sister Sarah at the time of the blaze, said: "Dawn hasn't really said much yet. She is still in shock. We all are. Everyone is devastated."

Mother-of-six Tina added: "Dawn spent nearly all of her time with her children. They are her life.

"It is terrible. Jane was such a loveable teenager."

Tina, who lives with her mum Sylvia, added: "I will never get over seeing one of the children being carried out of the house on a stretcher. It was awful."

Moorhead High School pupil Dawn was brought up in Rishton before moving to Accrington when she was a young girl.

She worked on a number of Youth Training Schemes before starting a family and is now unemployed.

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