Son was minding elderly father for the night when they perished in Tipperary fire

Father of three Stephen Lee, 83, and his son John, 56, died after the property in Littleton, Co Tipperary, Ireland, burst into flames in the early hours of Monday morning

A father and son were tragically killed after a horror blaze tore through their family home in a suspected accidental fire.

Father of three Stephen Lee, 83, and his son John, 56, died after the property in Littleton, Co Tipperary, Ireland, burst into flames in the early hours of Monday morning. Locals of the West Tipperary area say John was only staying with his father for the night when the tragedy occurred, the Irish Mirror reports.

Stephen, a former eircom worker who lost his wife Mary last year, was due to celebrate his 84th birthday next week. Emergency services were called to the scene by neighbours at around 2:30am, but despite a quick response, efforts to save the men were unsuccessful.

Local councillor and neighbour Sean Ryan said the pair were well known in the area and were lovely gentlemen. “We’re neighbours of them so my home house 70 yards away", he told the Irish Mirror.

"Their youngest son Christopher was in the same class in me as school so I knew them. They were two lovely gentlemen. Stephen was very quiet, he was a widower, his wife Mary passed away about two years ago.

"So a member of the family would always stay with him and John was staying with him last night when this tragedy occurred. We do know the neighbours called the fire brigade. We want to thank the emergency services for all they did. They were here within 12 minutes and did everything they could but were unfortunately unable to save them.”

Paying tribute to both men he added: “John would be the oldest of four in the family. They were quiet people. The daughter had a butcher in Littleton up until they closed last year. Stephen worked as a technician with eircom all his life. He would have gone about his business in a quiet way.

"His wife would have been involved in the bingo and choir and things like that. They were just lovely people. "John was only staying for the night. They used to do it in a rota,” he explained. Two units of the Tipperary Fire and Rescue Service from Thurles and Templemore raced to the scene of the fire on Monday.

Gardai say they are investigating the fire. A garda spokesperson said: “Two men, aged in their 80s and 50s, have been pronounced deceased. The bodies of the deceased remain at the scene. The scene is currently being preserved for technical examination. Investigations are ongoing.”

A spokesperson for the fire service in north Tipperary confirmed that the fire was shortly brought under control.