EDINBURGH – The deaths of three young children in an explosion are being treated as suspicious, police said last night.
The primary school children were found after a blast in a block of flats in Edinburgh’s Slateford Road at around 3pm. It was thought the children died in a gas explosion but last night Lothian and Borders Police said there was no fault with the supply.
A police spokesman said: “A criminal investigation is currently under way and nothing more can be said at this time into the circumstances which led to their deaths.”
A woman, believed to be the children’s mother, is being treated in the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.
Neighbours said she had jumped from the third floor balcony of the modern terrace block. They described hearing the noise of a blast and the smell of gas.
Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue also extinguished what was described as a “small fire” on the first floor of the building.
Neighbour Fattah Hamami (19) said: “I think she dropped herself from the third-floor balcony.”
A police source was unable to confirm reports the children had died before the blast but said efforts to track down their father were continuing.
Postmortem examinations are due to be carried out on the three children, two boys and a girl, and police said no details about their identities would be released until these were completed.
Scotland Gas Networks sent engineers to the scene but said the explosion did not involve its network.
A spokesman said: “However, our engineers will remain in the area to provide expert advice to th’e emergency services if required.” – (PA)