The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)

Police probe after man dies in blaze

Residents ‘very shocked’ after body discovered in tenement fire

- NEIL HENDERSON AND STEVEN RAE

Neighbours were in shock after a man died following a fire at a block of flats in Fife.

Emergency services were called to Randolph Street in Buckhaven just after 7.30am yesterday.

Two fire crews from Kirkcaldy brought the blaze under control before the man’s body was discovered inside the three-storey tenement block. Police Scotland has now launched an investigat­ion into the fatal fire.

Nearby residents said the man lived in a ground floor flat and was thought to be in his 30s.

One resident living just yards from the block said: “The man was often seen walking to the local shops and to hear he’s died is so sad. People are understand­ably very shocked.”

A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Around 7.40am on Friday April 2, we were made aware of a fire at a property in Randolph Street, Buckhaven.

“Emergency services attended and the body of a man was found inside. Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstan­ces.”

Police have launched an investigat­ion after a man died following a fire in Fife yesterday morning. The discovery was made by firefighte­rs at a property in Buckhaven around 7.40am.

The incident started at a property in Randolph Street around 7.30am, with two fire crews sent to tackle the blaze.

Neighbours said the ground floor property was occupied by a man in his 30s.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Around 7.40am on Friday April 2, we were made aware of a fire at a property in Randolph Street, Buckhaven.

“Emergency services attended and the body of a man was found inside.

“Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstan­ces.”

A spokeswoma­n for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said: “We received an alert at 7.49am on Friday April 2 to a fire at flats in Randolph Street in Buckhaven.

“Two fire appliances from Kirkcaldy fire station were mobilised to bring the fire under control.”

Neighbours said the man, who police have not yet named, was in his 30s.

He is also understood to have lived alone in the ground-floor flat.

One resident living just yards from the block, who did not want to be named, said locals were shocked to learn of his death. They said: “The man was often seen walking to the local shops and to hear he has died is so sad.

“People are understand­ably very shocked by it all.”

The fire broke out in a three-storey tenement block.

One resident said there was a smell of smoke at around 6.30am but no visible fire.

She added: “My partner woke up at around 6.30am and could smell smoke but didn’t know where it was coming from.

“In fact we only knew that it was in this block when the two fire engines arrived just after 7.30am.

“The flat is occupied by a disabled man who we saw coming and going from time to time.”

A police presence remained on the street and white-suited fire investigat­ion officers were seen entering and leaving the property throughout the day. The rear of the block was also cordoned off as the investigat­ion continued.

Officers also conducted house-to-house inquiries among residents.

“To hear he has died is so sad. People are... very shocked

 ??  ?? INQUIRIES: Fire investigat­ion teams and forensic officers on the scene of the fatal flat fire in Randolph Street early yesterday morning.
INQUIRIES: Fire investigat­ion teams and forensic officers on the scene of the fatal flat fire in Randolph Street early yesterday morning.
 ??  ?? TRAGIC: Teams of investigat­ors spent the day at the flat in Randolph Street, Buckhaven, following the fatal fire.
TRAGIC: Teams of investigat­ors spent the day at the flat in Randolph Street, Buckhaven, following the fatal fire.

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