Fatal house fire in Derry not being treated as suspicious - PSNI

Rossdowney Road remains closed to traffic as investigations continue at the scene.

Much-loved local woman Heather Diamond was pronounced dead on Sunday morning shortly after emergency services arrived on the scene and removed her from the property.

A spokesperson for the PSNI said on Tuesday night: “An investigation into a fatal fire at a house at Rossdowney Road in Derry Londonderry is currently ongoing, however, police are not treating the fire as suspicious at this time.

“The Rossdowney Road remains closed as a number of further enquiries are conducted at the scene and officers would like to thank anyone affected by the road closure for their patience.”

On Monday, the Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service expressed their condolences to Ms. Diamond’s family and friends and related details of the operation on Sunday morning.

A Fire & Rescue Service spokesperson said: “The thoughts and sympathies of Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIFRS) are with the family, friends and loved ones of a woman who died following a fire in a house on the Rossdowney Road in Londonderry.

“On Sunday March 7, 2021 at 7.27am, Firefighters were called to reports of a fire in a house on Rossdowney Road, Derry.

“Two appliances each from Crescent Link Fire Station, Northland Fire station, Strabane Fire Station and the Specialist Rescue Team attended the incident.

“A female casualty was removed from the house and given CPR by Firefighters before being transferred to the care of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service. Tragically the woman died at the scene of the incident.

“Firefighters wore breathing apparatus and used two hose reel jets, a jet and an aerial appliance to extinguish the fire.

“The cause of the fire is under investigation and the incident was dealt with by 2.11pm.”

Tributes have been paid to Ms. Diamond, who was a local zumba teacher as well as the office manager at Faughan Anglers.