One killed, two hurt in Tilburg house fire

One person was killed and two others were injured in a house fire on Bieslookweg in Tilburg on Tuesday morning, local media reported. Neither the cause of the fire nor the identity of the deceased were immediately revealed.

The house house is divided up in a way that different rooms can be rented out, the Brabants Dagblad reported. One area resident told broadcast outlet Omroep Brabant that the tenants are unrelated, and the daughter of the landlord said they are from Somalia and are not related.

The newspaper said several men are registered at the address ranging from their late twenties into their fifties. By the afternoon, police had not ruled out an accidental death or a crime.

"It seems likely that he died from the fire, but it could also have been another cause," a police spokesperson told the newspaper. The fire was reported at about 9:25 a.m., and was brought under control 45 minutes later. His remains had still not been removed from the home hours after the fire was extinguished.

Of the two other victims, one was taken to hospital by ambulance, while the second only needed a check by paramedics. The street was closed off as detectives and forensic investigators tried to determine what happened.

A local resident described the loud bang just before the fire. “It was like an explosion from a gas bottle,” she said. “I went outside to look and saw smoke and flames coming out of the window. I also saw someone jump from the window.” 

The tenant who did not need to be hospitalized was not allowed to enter his own home while the investigation is underway. Witnesses noted that the front door window was smashed in, and other windows were left wide open.