Higham Hill Road, Walthamstow
(Picture: Google Maps)An 80-year-old woman has died in a fire that engulfed a house in Walthamstow early on Wednesday morning.
Forty firefighters from London Fire Brigade were scrambled to the scene in Higham Hill Road, north-east London, around 5.20am.
They arrived to find most of the ground floor and part of the first floor of a semi-detached house ablaze.
An 80-year-old woman was pulled from the ground floor of the building by firefighters, but she was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
Her next of kin have been informed.
Veysel Karakayal, who runs Rose Hill Cafe across the street from where the woman lived, told of his shock at the tragedy.
“I’m so sad - sometimes I would say ‘hello, hello ma’am’, sometimes she would say hello,” he said.
The fire was under control by shortly after 7am, but emergency services remained at the scene on Wednesday afternoon.
The cause of the blaze is under investigation, but the Met Police says it is “not believed to be suspicious”.
“Officers will assist fire investigators as they carry out enquiries into the cause,” said Scotland Yard in a statement.
