Woman dies after early morning house fire
BBCA woman has died following a fire at a house in west Belfast - the third fatal blaze in Northern Ireland within 24 hours.
Police received a report of an ongoing blaze at a property in Areema Drive, Dunmurry, at 03:55 GMT on Saturday.
The woman, in her 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene.
A man in his 50s, a 19-year-old woman and an 11-year-old girl escaped from the blaze after being alerted by smoke alarms, according to the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS).
They have been taken to hospital.
"Sadly this is the third loss of life within the last 24 hours," the NIFRS said in a statement.
"It is unusual to have so many house fire fatalities over such a brief period but we have seen a rise in this type of incident this year," they added.
Police officers and the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service also attended the blaze.
Two fire engines went to the scene and firefighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the house, using hose reel jets and thermal imaging equipment.
'Shocked and distressed'
Sinn Féin MP Paul Maskey said it was "such tragic news and my heartfelt thoughts and condolences go out to the woman's family and friends".
He said he had been in the area and "local residents are understandably shocked and distressed".
Two people died in separate house fires on Friday, with a man in his 20s dying at the scene of a blaze at Queen Victoria Gardens in Belfast and a woman in her 50s dying at a second fire at Abbey Park in Bangor.
Saturday's fire is not being treated as suspicious, according to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).
