Electrical appliance did not cause blaze that killed mother and her five children

A Beko fridge freezer has been ruled out as being the cause of a house fire in Neasden which claimed the lives of a mother and her five children.

Investigators probing the fire in Sonia Gardens at around 1am on Saturday morning have confirmed that the electrical appliance, which is one of two fridges in the property, was not to blame.

Hanin and Basma Kua, aged 14 and 13 respectively, perished along side their 41-year-old mother Muna Elmufatish, nine-year-old sister Amal and brothers Mustafa, five and Yehya, two, after a fire ripped through their home..

Father Bassam, 51, and eldest daughter 16-year-old Nur managed to escape the inferno and are being treated for their injuries in hospital.

Mr Kua is in a stable condition but Nur, who is said to have suffered severe burns before jumping from a bedroom window, is fighting for her life.

Certain models of the frost free fridge freezers made between January 2000 and October 2006 were deemed by the London Fire Brigade to be a fire risk.

Speculation had been rife that the Beko fridge found in the property could have been one of the models at the centre of a safety recall by the company last year.

But, Navin Shah, London Assembly member for Brent and Harrow and member of the London Fire Emergency Planning Authority, who had visited the scene over the weekend, had dismissed the rumours as irresponsible and distressing.

Ragip Balcioglu, managing director of Beko plc said: “This is a deeply tragic incident and we offer our deepest condolences to the Kua family at this difficult time.”

Earlier today (Monday), the two schools attended by the children held special assemblies in their memories.

Hanin and Basma attended Crest Academy School in Crest Road, Neasden, where Nur was a former pupil and Braintcroft Primary School in nearby Warren Road was attended by Amal and Mustafa.

Bev Bell, Crest Academy principal told the Times the school are providing counsellors for grieving pupils.

She added: “It’s very sombre and quiet.

“We have a large community of girls here who are very upset.”

Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing.