Heartbroken Razia Kayani and her husband Nazim had to be held back as paramedics tried in vain to resuscitate the children after fire engulfed the Sheffield house in the early hours of yesterday.
Tragically Adhyan, nine, his seven-year-old brother Amaan and their nine-week-old sister – her parents had not yet decided on a name – all succumbed to the smoke.
Their grandmother Shabbina Begum, 54, died after going back into the terraced home to try to rescue the children from their top-floor bedroom, along with their aunt, student Anum Kayani, 20, who lived with them.
A faulty electrical appliance in the kitchen is thought to be the likely cause of the blaze.
The family were asleep when they were woken by a smoke alarm.
The blaze took hold so quickly they did not all have time to escape before being overcome by acrid fumes.
The children’s father, a taxi driver, was working when the fire broke out. He raced home to find paramedics trying to revive the five victims.
Neighbour Quasim Saddiqie said: “I heard screaming and shouting. By the time the dad got there the firefighters had carried the bodies from the house. The parents wanted to get towards them but they were held back by the police.”
Yesterday relative Ishfaq Kayani said: “It’s just a huge tragedy. Words cannot describe how sad this is. It’s a tragedy beyond description.”
He called the children “full of life, quite bubbly and very energetic”.
He said of his cousin Mrs Begum: “She gave her life to try to save the children. It is what any mother or grandmother would try to do but tragically it just wasn’t to be.
“As soon as the news broke just after midnight, we came round. I’ve been with the family. It’s so sad. A couple of hours ago the whole family was leading their normal life – quite prosperous, happy. Just in a matter of minutes the whole family has been destroyed.
“You can well imagine what the children’s parents are going through. They were such a lovely family, highly respected. Quite an industrious family who had everything going for them.”
He said the children’s mother was “beyond consoling”.
“I think she was in the house,” he added. “She managed to escape. The grandmother of the children made attempts to rescue them but obviously it wasn’t to be.”
Neighbours revealed that up to 300 people came out into the street to offer help.
South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said 25 firefighters battled the blaze.