Melbourne: Arson detectives are investigating the cause of a fatal car fire in Melbourne’s southeast that left three people dead, including two young children.
Investigations are ongoing about the circumstances of the fire in Cranbourne West on Thursday night but police say they are not looking for any suspects.
The trio has been identified as a Keralite woman Jasmine in her thirties and her two girl children, Evelyn and Caroline aged under six. She belongs to the Lifespring Pentecostal Church and it is said that Jasmine, a nurse, was living separated from her husband.
Firefighters rushed to extinguish the intense blaze, which had spread from the sedan car, parked about 15 metres from the side of the highway, into nearby paddocks.
Victoria police and fire crews were called to the fire on Western Port Highway just before 8 pm on Thursday. Emergency services arrived at the scene to find three bodies inside the burnt-out vehicle. After extinguishing the fire a crime scene was established.
Images show the vehicle just off the highway, in front of a farm gate.
It is understood neighbours heard a bang around the time of the fire and assumed it was a car crash along the road.
After the fire was put out, the bodies of a woman and two children were found in the hatchback. A truck driver stopped to help at the scene during the fire, while multiple witnesses called Triple Zero. The exact circumstances leading up to the fire have not been determined, but it is believed the car was parked when the fire began.
The burnt-out vehicle was cleared by police early Friday morning. There were no tyre marks leading off the highway, and the fences of the property were still intact.
All that remained of the scene on Friday was a large patch of blackened grass, seared by the fire the night before, and tracks where police had pulled the car from the scene.
A local farmer, who did not want to be identified, briefly attended the scene to check the gate was locked.
Across the road sat the neat lawn of a dog obedience school, and cars commuting on Friday morning.
Investigators want to speak to anyone who witnessed the incident or has dash-cam footage of the fire.