A HOUSE fire which killed three young children was so intense investigators could not be sure how it started, an inquest heard yesterday.

A discarded cigarette or an electric fire which may have been faulty or accidentally switched on were the most likely causes of the blaze, which killed six-year-old Leah Braine, Darren, five, and their three-year-old sister, Demi, at their semi-detached home in Widdrington Station, north of Morpeth, Northumberland.

The ferocious blaze quickly consumed the downstairs front room as their mother, Judith, slept and their father, also called Darren, briefly visited a friend's home, the coroner at Wansbeck General Hospital was told.

Mrs Braine managed to escape with their 18-month-old son, Lewis, as her husband and neighbours tried desperately to rescue the children.

Firefighters arrived at the house in March to find a crowd of up to 75 neighbours trying to tackle the blaze.

Station Officer Barry Bennett told the hearing that the three children were rescued by firefighters who battled against intense heat to get upstairs.

The three children, who were all unconscious, were taken outside but attempts to resuscitate them were in vain.

Detective Chief Inspector David Borrie said police had spent three weeks conducting a thorough investigation and had ruled out any possibility of the fire being started deliberately.

The home was fitted with two smoke alarms but the one downstairs was faulty.

The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death in all three cases.