A woman has died after a blaze at a house in south-west London.
The victim, who was in her 40s, was found on the ground floor of her home in Fountain Road, Tooting.
Neighbours alerted police at just after 11pm on Wednesday night.
Francisco Canizo, 43, said: “I saw smoke coming out of the house. Earlier I had heard the woman’s dog barking.
“I know the woman, she was lovely. She bought a dog in lockdown and I used to see her out and chat.
“It’s devastating news. There were so many firefighters at police here, it’s a tragedy.”
Another said: “She only moved in a month or so ago. She was a really friendly person. There was a lot of smoke and her dog Prince was in the back garden.”
Nazia Amjad described the victim as “the nicest neighbour you could have”.
She added: “Everybody had been watching the football and then a woman and a boy were banging on the door.
“I looked out and there was smoke coming from the house. Some was coming in our bathroom window.
“My neighbour was such a lovely person it’s horrific what has happened. She lived alone with her dog, she was very friendly. She loved the dog so much, it’s too horrible to think about.”
Forensic teams are trawling through the damaged house to hunt for clues to how the blaze started.
The incident is not being treated as arson at this stage.
A police spokesperson said: “Police were called by London Fire Brigade at approximately 23:15hrs on Wednesday, 7 July to reports of a fire at a residential address in Fountain Road, SW17.
“The body of a woman, believed aged in her 40s, was found deceased inside the address.
“Next of kin have been informed.
“While the cause of the fire remains under investigation, at this early stage police are not treating the incident as suspicious. Enquiries are ongoing.”
A spokesperson from London Fire Brigade said three engines were called to the blaze but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
“A woman has sadly died following a house fire on Fountain Road in Wandsworth,” they said.
“Part of the ground floor and stairs of the two-storey mid-terraced house were damaged by the fire. Firefighters rescued one woman from the property. Sadly she was pronounced dead at the scene.
“The Brigade was called at 2303 and the fire was under control by 2355. Three fire engines and around 15 firefighters from Tooting, Wandsworth and Wimbledon attended the scene.
“The cause of the fire is under investigation.”
