INQUESTS into the tragic deaths of a brother and sister who perished in a house fire earlier this year are due to be opened.

Alan and Linda McGinty, who were aged 63 and 68, died in the blaze, which took hold on the residential street five months ago

Emergency services were scrambled to Ringwood Road, on Bradford’s Canterbury estate, early on the morning of March 28 this year.

It was later confirmed the siblings had been killed in the fire and a probe was launched to determine the cause.

A report from West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said they were believed to have started the fire deliberately.

Neighbours saw black smoke coming from the house and two seats of fire were discovered.

One resident, who was at the scene at the time of the fire, said: “The fire brigade made a big hole in the door because they couldn’t get in.

“There was loads of black smoke coming out of the house.”

The neighbour also saw the brother and sister receiving medical attention.

"It's so sad," she added.

Another neighbour said: "It’s sad. We have a very close and tight-knit community.”

There was a huge presence from the emergency services, with police cars and fire engines at the scene.

A large police cordon blocked the road while investigations were carried out at the scene.

A forensic tent was put up within the police cordon, while a smashed window on the second floor of the property could also be seen.

A report to West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Fire Authority earlier this year detailed recent fatal incidents.

Touching on the Ringwood Road fire, the report said: “The fatalities in this incident were brother and sister aged 68 and 63 respectively.

“They lived in a mid-terraced house. There were two separate seats of fire, and it is believed that the fires were started deliberately by the two individuals.”

Last month, Bradford Coroners’ Court issued an appeal to trace relatives of the siblings and urged people to get in touch.

The inquests into their deaths will be officially opened tomorrow (Thursday) morning at Bradford Coroners’ Court by assistant coroner Ian Pears.

When a death is reported to a coroner, they decide whether an investigation is needed, and, if it is, investigate to establish the identity of the person who has died, how they died, when they died, and, where they died