TRIBUTES have been paid to a mother and daughter who died in a horrific house fire in Plumstead yesterday.

Hayleigh Kaur and her mother Caroline Kaur were reportedly the victims of the fierce flames that destroyed their family home in Purrett Road in the early hours of June 18.

Three more women, two men and a dog managed to escape the blaze in Purrett Road which saw 35 firefighters tackle the inferno for more than two hours.

Neighbour Dorothy McCole, who lives opposite, says mother-of-five Caroline - who had worked until recently at nearby Gallions Mount Primary School - was a "lovely matriarch".

Mrs McCole told News Shopper: “Caroline was the matriarch in that family – she led the family.

“She was a lovely, lovely person and a leader.”

Twitter tributes have been given to Hayleigh, who was a WWE wrestling fan, and an online fund has been set up to raise cash for the family.

Twitter user ‏@RKOsLittleViper 21h posted: “Today the world lost an amazing beautiful girl. Her name? Hayleigh Kaur. A daughter, sister, cousin…”

While Sarah Griffiths tweeted: “Hayleigh Kaur you will never be forgotten. We have lost but heaven has gained. Sleep tight HardKaur 😭😪 RIP”

Residents of Purrett Road described hearing shouts and blasts like fireworks around 1am from the fire which left the house gutted and half the roof destroyed.

Mrs McCole said: “All I could see was this house in flames, absolutely massive flames.

“If you can imagine an open fire in a grate – that is what it was like. It was so fierce. “

We are very distraught because we are neighbours and we were powerless to do anything last night.”

Joshua Birdee, 18, added: “All the neighbourhood came together because we are a close neighbourhood.

“There were blasts and smoke about 1.30am. It was a big blast, like an explosion – like a lot of fireworks built into one.”

The mother and daughter are understood to have died inside the house and five other people were taken to hospital.

The fire is being investigated by police and the London Fire Brigade but it is not being treated as suspicious.