Girl, 11, and man, 45, die in fire at takeaway

An 11-year-old girl and a 45-year-old man have died in a fire at a Chinese takeaway.

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue said the blaze was caused by an air fryer.

Emergency services attended the scene on Manby Middlegate, Grimoldby, near Louth, at 06:10 GMT on Wednesday.

Lincolnshire Police said five other people were taken to hospital, including a woman in her 30s who remained in a serious condition.

Two men in their 40s and two children under 10 have been released from hospital.

Chief Fire Officer Mark Baxter said: "Upon arrival at the scene, crews were met with a well-developed fire, which has tragically claimed the lives of two people, left another in a critical condition and injured several others."

He added: "This will be an extremely difficult time for the family, their friends, and the tight-knit community, and our thoughts and condolences go out to them all."

Flowers have been left at the scene, including by 33-year-old Michael van der Lubbe, who said he had ordered his recent Valentine's Day meal from the takeaway.

"It's just hit the community quite hard and it's a time for everyone to come together," he said.

"It's really close to home and it just feels so horrible for the family and what they must be going through right now."

Christian Taylor, 33, was another who paid his respects.

"As a takeaway, it was lovely – always very happy. It's obviously really sad what's happened," he said.

He added that the community had started fundraising to help the family.

"All we can do is hope that those that are still OK are going to be coming back, and we'll make sure they have everything they need if we can."

Dan Moss, of Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, said: "We recognise that lots of households will have air fryers. We don't want people to panic.

"What we're asking them to do is make sure that they use them in line with the manufacturers' recommendations, and make sure that they remain vigilant."

Listen to highlights fromLincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch thelatest episode of Look Northor tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.

Download the BBC News app from the App Storefor iPhone and iPad orGoogle Play for Android devices