Christchurch fatal fire to be investigated

Expert fire investigators are being enlisted in a bid to determine the cause of a house fire which killed an elderly woman on Thursday.

The woman, believed to be in her 80s, was found dead in her council flat on Clent Ln in Spreydon after the blaze, which started shortly before  10.30pm.

Detective Sergeant Mark Keane said a post mortem would be conducted tomorrow to formally identify the woman.

He expected to be able to release her name following the post mortem.

Fire safety officer Mark Thomas said their investigation had so far only been able to esablish that the blaze was accidental.

Expert investigators, who were from Christchurch, would be at the address tomorrow.

''There are a couple of things we need an expert analysis on. We are hoping it will give us more direction [on the cause],'' he said.

Police said the woman was the only resident in the flat. The blaze started in the living area, where her body was found.

Fire Service assistant area commander Dave Berry said earlier that the blaze, despite being put out within minutes, was "unsurvivable".

- © Fairfax NZ News