KEY POINTS:
A fire that killed a five-year-old boy and seriously burned his three-year-old brother may have been started by the two boys playing with matches, police say.
Firefighters were called to blazing home in Kauika Rd, Whangarei, near the city centre, at 8.44am, after receiving a number of calls from the public.
Fire Service northern communications shift manager Scott Osmond said the two children were found in a bedroom by firemen.
The five-year-old was dead, and his brother was flown to Auckland's Middlemore Hospital with burns to 20 per cent of his body.
A hospital spokeswoman said today the surviving brother was in a serious condition.
Northland police spokeswoman Sarah Kennett told NZPA "initial indications" showed the fire had started in the children's bedroom and matches had been found in the room.
Ms Kennett said the cause of the fire was still to be confirmed, but it was not suspicious.
She said there were four smoke alarms in the house but none of them had batteries in.
"The message for people is to check smoke alarms and see if there's batteries in them and whether they're flat."
Ms Kennett said the Fire Service recommended changing the batteries every six months at daylight savings time.
The two adults in the house were not seriously injured but had some smoke inhalation, she said.
- NZPA
