Garda technical and forensic experts in Longford were preserving the scene of a fatal fire yesterday at a house in Longford town in which an elderly woman and her great-grandchild died tragically on Thursday evening.
The 91-year-old woman, Mrs Ellen Lawrence, was asleep in the house in the Springlawn housing estate at the time.
She and her 11-month-old great-grandson, Michael Doyle, were both overcome by smoke inhalation.
The infant was rushed by ambulance to Mullingar general hospital, but died en route.
His parents, who were also in the house at the time, escaped uninjured.
Although the Doyle family and their neighbours made every possible effort to rescue Mrs Lawrence, they were unable to reach her, eyewitnesses reported.
Mr Michael Doyle and his wife, Anne, the infant's parents, who were in a distraught state yesterday at the loss of their child and his great-grandmother, live at the same address.
Eyewitnesses described how Mr Doyle alerted his neighbours to summon help at around 10.30 p.m. At that stage the flames were spreading rapidly.
Two units of the local fire brigade fought valiantly to bring it under control, but it proved impossible to rescue Mrs Lawrence.
"There was nothing anyone could do," a neighbour said.
Garda Supt Pat McGee said the elderly woman lived downstairs in the house while the infant was upstairs with his parents when the fire broke out.
The Doyles discovered the fire when they came downstairs and found Mrs Lawrence engulfed in flames and smoke.
The results of a post-mortem conducted yesterday on Mrs Lawrence and Michael Doyle have yet to be disclosed but Garda sources are confident their deaths were not suspicious.