The victims' parents were last night in a serious condition in hospital following the blaze at their home in the centre of Helensburgh in Argyll.
Police said they had launched a murder inquiry into the deaths of the two youngsters, named locally a
s Keith Sharkey, 21, and his sister Bridget, aged 8.The blaze was reported in the early hours of yesterday morning.
A three-street cordon around the scene at Scott Court was sealed off by Strathclyde Police, with heavy scorch marks and at least one broken window visible on the outside of the building.
Neighbours had heard screams, and an off-duty police officer raised the alarm.
One nearby resident, who declined to be named, said he wanted to pull the victims to safety but emergency crews would not let him.
Fire crews forced their way into the burning flat on top floor of the three-floor building and found the young man dead at the scene.
They took his 55-year-old father, his 46-year-old moth er and his sister to Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, Renfrewshire, where the girl died a short time later.
The father, named locally as Thomas Sharkey, was later taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary and both he and his wife, Angela, are being treated for serious burns.
Officers said they would not formally release their identities.
Area Commander, Chief Inspector Fergus Byrne, said last night: "Around 5:10am, emergency services were called to a report of a fire at a house in Scott Court.
"Extensive enquiries have been ongoing all day at the scene, including a full crime scene forensic investigation by forensic scientists, Fire Service and Strathclyde Police.
"This investigation is continuing. However, we believe that this fire was started intentionally and the deaths are being treated as murder."
Thomas Jnr was a popular golfer and had last week tied for fourth in a tournament at Helensburgh Golf Club, where flags were lowered yesterday morning to half mast.
Fellow golfers, who had known "Tommy" since he started playing in his youth, said it was still too early to speak about the tragedy.
At the nearby St Joseph's Catholic Church, Rev Peter Lennon told the congregation details of the blaze amid rumours that all four of the family had died as a result of the fire.
The family were well known in the area, and Bridget celebrated her first communion only two months ago.
Rev Lennon, who was visibly upset by the news, said: "They didn't come every Sunday but they were very well known and a good family.
"I was approached just before the morning service by a friend of the family and told they had died as a result of the fire and was asked to say a prayer for them.
"Everybody is in total shock. As soon as I read out the names, some of the younger girls who knew Bridget started crying."<!---
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