An 82-year-old woman has been found dead in her Dundee home following a devastating fire.
The blaze tore through a property on Stewart Street, just off Coupar Angus Road, Lochee, in the early hours of Thursday.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 3.30am on Thursday, January 7, officers in Dundee received a report of a fire at a property on Stewart Street.
“Emergency services attended and the body of an 82-year-old woman was found within.
“Enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances and a report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal in due course.”
Witnesses say a ferocious fire could be seen coming from inside the front of the home, which then spread to the rear.
Residents in the nearby multi-storeys said huge flames were visible and the building was quickly engulfed.
The property is the western half of what is believed to be two semi-detached homes.
Evacuation
Residents in 11 flats at the adjacent Yeaman’s Alley block were evacuated by police after the alarm was raised around 3.30am while firefighters tried to control the blaze.
There were concerns a chimney at the gable end of the property, which is located just yards from the flats, could topple over.
Residents were not permitted to return until some seven hours later when the chimney was deemed stable and the fire mostly extinguished.
One man who lives at Yeaman’s Alley said he returned to his property just before 1pm having stayed up all night.
He said: “The police buzzed all the flats and came in to tell us we needed to leave.
“I have seen the elderly woman who lives there but I don’t know her.
“The property looks totally gutted.
“My best wishes are with the family.”
Inspections
The property is located next to busy Coupar Angus Road and a hundred metres from the rear of Lidl supermarket.
The smell of smoke still hung in the air on Thursday.
Both floors of the property appeared to be extensively damaged.
Windows were missing and brickwork around them had begun to come away.
Firefighters continued to work on the embers using hose reels to pour water directly into two large holes next to the building’s chimneys.
Electricity inspectors from Scottish & Southern Electricity (SSE) were also seen entering the property alongside gas inspectors.
Engineers dug up a footpath at the rear of the property.
The main pathway at the rear was cordoned off with a police officer guarding the route at Liff Road next to Sandy’s Bar.
Coupar Angus Road was closed in both directions initially but reopened later in the morning.
