A British family is missing and their treasured pets, including three horses, are dead. Police hope the upcoming search of the charred remains of their sprawling home will reveal vital clues to
what happened at Osbaston House.
Christopher Foster, his wife Jill and 15-year-old daughter Kirstie remain unaccounted for.
Until officers can safely enter the house for a search, it is not known whether the family was inside at the time of the fire.
Separate fires also destroyed the stables block, in which three shot horses were found, and another building. There is evidence the family dogs may have been shot and dragged into the house before the fire.
Structural experts are due to make the house, near Oswestry, safe for police to enter, after extensive work by fire fighters to bring the building's temperature down.
The house suffered extensive damage in the blaze, which police were alerted to by the fire service at about 4.50am on Tuesday.
Fire crews have remained on site during the past few days, damping down hot spots and working to bring the temperature within the building low enough for structural work to begin.
Once the house has been declared safe, specialist search teams and forensic experts will be able to enter.
Superintendent Gary Higgins, from Shropshire Police Division, said every possible line of enquiry to trace the family was being followed up, including an all-ports warning and speaking to family and friends.
"Until we can enter the property, we do not know whether the family was inside at the time of the fire, which we believe was started deliberately," he said.
"A lot of work has been done by the fire service overnight to damp it down and reduce the temperature enough for work to stabilise the structure to begin and make it safe to enter.
"Once it has been deemed safe, which we are hoping will be either this evening or tomorrow (UK time), specialist search teams and forensic experts will go in."
Superintendent Higgins added that once the search began, it was likely to take at least several days.
"It is a large property and there is a lot of debris inside which will have to be painstakingly sifted through and examined. This is not something which can be done quickly.
"Once we have access to the house, we will find out whether the family was inside at the time of the fire. Scenes of crime officers have already carried out examinations at the various outhouses.
"It is still very important that anyone who might have information which could help our investigation, or who might have seen the Foster family over the Bank Holiday before the fire, gets in touch," he said.
Superintendent Higgins added: "There has been a lot of speculation in some sections of the media, which has caused serious distress to the Foster's family and friends.
"Such speculation is not helpful to our investigation and until we gain access to the house and complete our search and examination, we are not in a position to make any further comment on such issues.
"A team of around 80 officers are working around the clock to establish what has happened at the house and the whereabouts of the family. This is an unusual and complex incident and every effort is being made to establish what happened."
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