Boys' fire death house searched

The bodies of Lewis and Taylor Jenkins were found inside the house

Fire and police investigators are combing a house in East Sussex where two young brothers died in a blaze.

Lewis Jenkins, aged seven, and his brother, Taylor, five, were found by firefighters at the terraced home in Milfoil Drive, Eastbourne, on Saturday.

Their mother, named by neighbours as Denise Goldsmith, 29, wept as she went to the scene to lay flowers on Sunday.

She did not comment on the deaths of the boys and had to be restrained by her family from entering the house.

Ms Goldsmith was treated in hospital for minor burns after the fire and released later the same day.

Neighbour Jason Maynard said he was one of a number of people who tried to rescue the boys from the fire on Saturday afternoon.

"I heard screaming and the sound of breaking glass," said Mr Maynard, 35.

"Me and my brother, Gary, ran over and could see the place was on fire.

"The mother was already outside and was screaming for someone to go in and get her kids.

Investigators are working to establish the cause of the fire

"We could see the kitchen going up but we couldn't get in, there were flames everywhere.

"We couldn't hear the boys - she thought they were under the stairs."

Neighbour Julie James said her children were fellow pupils of the brothers at nearby Shinewater Primary School.

"It's a tragic story really, everyone round here is very upset," she said.

Head teacher John Greenwood said in a statement that everyone at the school was shocked.

"Both boys will be very sadly missed and the family will need space to grieve and try to come to terms with what has happened," he said.

'Tragic accident'

"This will obviously have a profound effect on the school and the local community and we will be working with the local authority in supporting the pupils, staff and parents in any way we can."

Speaking outside the house on Sunday, Ch Insp Dick Coates said: "We have a team of detectives working on it, but at the present time there is nothing overly suspicious about the cause of the fire.

"Initial indications do not suggest anything other than this being a tragic accident."

He said officers would be at the scene for several days, and that police would have a clearer idea how the fire had started by Monday or Tuesday.

He said the thoughts and prayers of the emergency services were with the family.

Post-mortem examinations on the boys have yet to be carried out.

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Chief Inspector Dick Coates speaks about the investigation