Two babies have died in a fire in their home in Almendralejo (Badajoz) tonight.

The fire broke out at about 9 o'clock this evening in a block of flats in the Calle Encrucijada.  The cause of it is still not known.

The two dead children are triplets, just two years old. Their mother and the third triplet escaped alive.

According to witnesses, the mother ran out into the street, calling for help, leaving the triplets inside the flat on the second floor of the block.

A neighbour ran up into the blazing flat and rescued one of them, but the other two perished in their home, probably from the effects of smoke inhalation.

A few minutes after the fire broke out, the block of six flats was evacuated by the emergency services and the families have been found alternative housing for the night, although it is not thought that the building has suffered any structural damage.

Fire fighters were quickly on the scene from the nearby fire station, but were unable to do anything to save the two babies' lives because the fire had spread so quickly within the flat.