A HORROR house fire has killed five children from the same family as police probe if the fatal blaze was carried out by arsonists.
At least 10 people were found dead inside the home with the youngest being a three-year-old and the eldest being a 72-year-old.
A horror house fire has killed ten people in Lima, Peru Credit: AFP
People clear debris from the site of the fire Credit: AFP
The victims were all members of the same family from Lima, Peru, police chief Oscar Arriola confirmed.
An investigation “to determine the point of origin” and the tragic cause of the fire is underway, Arriola added.
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Peru’s president-elect Keiko Fujimori visited the ruins as she called the deaths “a terrible massacre”.
Fire crews rushed round to two homes in the southern La Victoria district early on Wednesday after witnesses recalled seeing flames coming out of the windows.
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At least 17 members of the family were in the building when the fire started at 3am local time.
Seven managed to escape the blaze, reports Infobae.
Survivor Gina Vilchez told reporters she was able to save herself and her children as they ran through smoke and dodged falling charred debris.
Five children, aged three, six, six, eight and 15, were found dead after the fire was extinguished.
Children remain near the charred ruins in Lima Credit: AFP
Windows were smashed after the flames tore through the homes Credit: AFP
Five adults aged 29, 35, 42 and 72, were also recovered.
Police chief Arriola said their bodies were burned beyond recognition.
Two others were injured and taken to hospital in non-life threatening conditions.
One line of inquiry behind the cause of the inferno is a possible arsonist attack by local extortionists.
A group are known to have been threatening local businesses around the same time as the deadly inferno, Peruvian media reported.
Local media say the family owned electric motorcycles and had a mattress business so may have been targeted.
Colonel John Lujan, who is leading the investigation, confirmed “a possible deliberate act or a case of extortion” is among the possible causes.
A statement from the National Police of Peru said: “Today, all of Peru falls silent in the face of a tragedy that plunges our nation into mourning.”
