The Policía Nacional are investigating a flat fire in Almería that claimed the lives of a mother and her two young children.

The Police and Fire Department believe that the fire, which took place on Calle Euro in the Barrio de El Alquian in the early hours of Wednesday, was a deliberate case of arson, but what is not clear is whether it was the mother who started it or whether there was a fourth person involved.

The fire personnel found the bedroom door blocked from the inside because a bed had been pushed up against it, forcing them to smash the door down. The fire was also very fierce leading investigators to suspect that an accelerant was used.

It was just past midnight when neighbours were alerted by the smell of smoke and then by the flames coming from the top-floor flat. The fire service from the nearby city of Almería was despatched to deal with the fire. Also sent were the Policía Local, the Policía Nacional and an ambulance.

(News: El Alquian, Almeria, Andalucia)