A WOMAN was being held in custody today after an elderly neighbour died in a suspicious house fire.

The victim died at her home in Mackenzie Way, Gravesend. The blaze is being treated as arson and a woman in her forties was being questioned by police.

The woman who died has not yet been named. Firefighters were called out to the scene just before 3.30am today. When they arrived they discovered both the ground floor and first floor flat well alight.

Initial inquiries suggest the blaze was deliberately started in the ground floor flat and quickly took hold in the flat above - where the victim lived.

A fire brigade spokesman said: "Crews who entered the premises wearing breathing apparatus found the casualty in the first floor flat. Early indications are that the fire started on the ground floor before spreading upstairs."

Both the fire brigade and police are carrying out investigations. Officers were carrying out door-to-door enquiries to see if neighbours could provide any clues.