This is the family caught up in a fatal blaze that killed five people in Hounslow last night – three of whom were children.
The enormous inferno ripped through the property on West London’s Channel Close with only one man managing to leave the home before the fire brigade arrived.
He was rushed to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and one person still remains unaccounted for.
can reveal that Aroen Kishen and his wife Seema were in the house when blaze broke out.
Neighbours described the moment the fire ripped through the property around 10:20 pm and have speculated that Diwali fireworks may have been a cause – however this has neither been confirmed nor ruled out by authorities.
can reveal that Aroen Kishen and his wife Seema (pictured with their children) were in the house when blaze broke out
Police have launched an investigation after five people died following a catastrophic house fire in Hounslow
The enormous inferno ripped through the property on West London’s Channel Close
During Diwali, it is customary to light candles and launch fireworks to symbolize the victory of good over evil and light over darkness.
Speaking at the scene, Chief Superintendent Sean Wilson said: ‘Sadly, we believe that three of those that have died were children and there is at least one other person, an adult, who remains unaccounted for.
‘This is truly a terrible incident. The loss of so many lives will cause unimaginable distress to the family and friends, and the communities, of all those involved.’
He went on: ‘I know that people across the country will be shocked and saddened by this terrible event last night.
‘Now, everyone will want to know why this tragedy occurred and we will be working tirelessly with our colleagues in the London Fire Brigade to find those answers.
‘At this time we have an open mind as to the cause of the fire and I would ask people not to add to that uncertainty by speculating.’
Mr Wilson, when asked if he could rule out fireworks as a possible cause of the fatal blaze, said: ‘At this stage, this is being investigated both by ourselves and specialist fire officers.
‘I am not ruling anything out, I don’t think we are in a position to do that.
‘We keep an open mind, it is such an early stage and there is an awful lot of work to be done.’
Describing the aftermath of the inferno, Felicia Matei, 29, told of how she grabbed her children and ran for cover.
She told : ‘We saw the man who lived there with his wife and children. My daughter used to play with his daughter.
‘There was fire in him and he was screaming something like ‘my kids, my kids’.
‘It was a big fire. I screamed to my family and said we need to run away. Some of my family were naked.’
Emergency services are seen near the burnt out property in Hounslow today
Over 70 emergency workers from the London Fire Brigade attended the inferno last night
The Evening Standard reports that the Kishen family had recently moved to London from Belgium.
Speaking to the paper Adelin Matei said: ‘They moved here from Belgium. They are a lovely family. They had Christmas lights around the front door. I don’t know whether the fire had anything to do with it. There was smoke in our house.’
Describing the fire, a neighbour added: ‘All we saw was smoke. There were loads of fireworks. Every Diwali.
‘They were going on while responders were here. It’s normal and traditional. It went on to well past one or two.’
Mr Kishen’s brother-in-law Dileep Singh, who lives in Manchester but travelled to London when news of the fire broke out, told the paper the family was ‘desperate for information.’
He said: ‘I received a call and came as soon as I could with my wife we are desperate for information.
‘My brother in law is alive but I don’t know what has happened to everyone else.
‘We are desperate. I was told the fire came from outside from a bin.
‘We are going to the hospital to try to get more information.’
Speaking to MyLondon, Kirit Valand, 70, lives on nearby Sutton Road, also said he had heard fireworks.
He said: ‘I went outside to see what happened and the fire brigade told us to shut our windows and doors. I was in panic, I didn’t sleep properly.
‘I was worried the fire would spread further. There were fireworks going off across the area for Diwali.
‘It’s very sad.’
Only one man managed to leave the home before the fire brigade arrived
It has been confirmed that the five people who died in the fire belonged to the same family
Ruth Cadbury, the MP for Hounslow has offered her condolences to the family.
The MP said: ‘I am devastated to learn this morning that 5 people, including children, died in a fire in a house in Hounslow last night. My thoughts are with their family, friends neighbours.’
Once firefighters managed to enter the property, they found a further five people on the first floor of the home, who were pronounced dead at the scene.
Around 70 firefighters and ten fire engines were present at the inferno.
It is not currently clear what caused the fire and police say it is thought all five victims were from the same family.
The ground floor and first floors of a mid-terraced house were destroyed by fire and part of the roof was also damaged by the blaze.
Nearby homes were evacuated during the blaze, which was brought under control by 1.25am on Monday.
London Fire Commissioner Andy Roe has also offered his condolences.
Police have said they have launched an urgent investigation into the source of the blaze
It is not currently clear what caused the fire and the Police and London Fire Brigade have said they are investigating
He said: ‘This is a terribly sad incident and the thoughts of all of us at London Fire Brigade are with the family, friends and all those affected at this difficult time.
‘Staff will be in the local community today to offer support and advice where needed.
‘The London Fire Brigade was called at 10.26pm and the fire was under control by 1.25am. Fire crews from Heston, Southall, Twickenham, Hayes, Feltham and surrounding fire stations attended the scene.
‘The cause of the fire is under investigation.’
The London Ambulance Service also dispatched five ambulances, two officers, a Hazardous Area Response Team (HART), and the London Air Ambulance to provide medical assistance.