Two people who died in a house fire in Grangetown have been named locally as seven-year-old Valentina Foster and her 34-year-old aunt Natalie McDonald.
Emergency services, including police and firefighters, responded to a blaze at a property on Birchington Avenue in Grangetown, Redcar and Cleveland, at 5:23am on Wednesday.
Two deaths confirmed in Birchington Avenue blaze
Two people, including a child, lost their lives in the incident. A woman, 48, remains in Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in a critical condition, while three other people sustained injuries believed to be non life-threatening.
The two deceased have been named locally as Valentina Foster, seven, and Natalie McDonald, 34. Natalie's mother, Lisa Kirton, has paid tribute to her daughter, describing her as "a beautiful, bubbly person who everyone knew."
Tribute from mother of Natalie McDonald
Ms Kirton said: "She had a heart of gold who would give anyone anything. She left behind a daughter with no parents."
She added: "We live opposite and were woken at 5am and there were people getting dragged out of fires when we were there at the scene. We were waiting for Natalie to come out and after about three hours police told us she had died."
Valentina described as 'one of the family'
Valentina was the daughter of McDonald's husband's brother. Ms Kirton said she was "one of the family," adding: "She had been staying at the house for the school summer holidays. She was a very cute girl and was Natalie's niece."
Tributes to the victims have been posted online. One said: "Life is so cruel my beautiful granddaughter Valentina. Your dad will be waiting for you." Another said: "Aw my Valentina. Why you? You're just a baby."
Murder investigation launched
Cleveland Police has launched a murder investigation following the house fire. Two men, aged 23 and 31, have been arrested on suspicion of murder. They remain in police custody and enquiries are ongoing.
