Man and woman arrested after two adults and two children killed in house fire

Two people have been arrested over the deaths of two adults and two children in a suspected arson attack on a house in Ireland.

Philip and Kim English were killed in the fire in Waterford shortly after 5am on Tuesday.

Two children, named Callum and Jayden, also died, while two more children with critical injuries were taken to hospital in Dublin.

On Thursday, police arrested a man in his 20s and a woman in her 30s over the incident.

Gardai said the duo were arrested on suspicion of facilitating a criminal organisation.

Police believe the blaze was started deliberately and have begun a murder investigation.

A post-mortem examination on Mr and Mrs English and their sons have been completed but the results are not being released for "operational reasons".

Gardai have repeated their appeal for information which took place on Birch Avenue, Birchwood.

On Thursday, Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane said the attack showed "utter contempt for human life".

Multiple properties have been searched with a number of electronic devices and vehicles seized as part of an "intense" Garda investigation.

Mr Cullinane added: "This murderous attack showed utter contempt for human life, and anyone who planned, ordered, or carried out this attack must face the full force of the law.

"Drug-related intimidation must also be confronted head on. Other families are looking out their front doors and wondering, could their children be next?

"No family should have to put their children to bed wondering whether someone will set fire to their home before morning, and yet drug gangs and organised criminals are inflicting precisely that terror on families.

"They threaten children. They assault people. They burn homes, they murder people, and they pursue parents, friends, and even neighbours for money."

Hundreds attended a vigil on Wednesday in the Birchwood area.

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