CALGARY—The bodies of three people were found Monday after firefighters extinguished a burning vehicle in a northwest Calgary neighbourhood.

Calgary police say it appears one of the victims was a male and the other two were female. None of the victims has been identified and autopsies are scheduled over the next few days.

“As you can imagine, the vehicle was fully involved, so there was extensive damage,” said police spokeswoman Emma Poole. “The medical examiner will be assisting us with the identification process.”

The homicide unit is investigating while police try to determine if the deaths were the result of an accident or criminal activity.

The fire was put out about 7 a.m. and by mid-day yellow police tape surrounded a construction site in the new subdivision of Sage Hill.

“It’s a fairly new community. My understanding is there’s quite a bit of construction around there,” Poole said.

Police identified the car as a black, 2011 Chevrolet Cruze.

A police forensic unit van was set up Monday morning outside the wooden frame of a building under construction and vans from Calgary Fire Department investigators and the medical examiner’s office were also on the scene.

Tarps were draped to obscure the view of the burned-out vehicle and there were black scorch marks on the outer wall of the building.

Officers in blue jumpsuits and gloves could be seen at the site. One was taking photos from atop the building.

Glea MacDonald said she’s used to being woken up by noise from the construction site behind her house, but Monday morning was different.

She said she was roused from her sleep by sirens and then heard a loud bang. By the time she had a look out her back window, she saw smoke.

“We’re quite intrigued by this because it’s creepy. It’s right behind our house,” she said. “How could it happen in broad daylight?”

MacDonald’s father, Amador Tejada, said he was already awake when he heard sirens and several small bangs followed by a big one.

“It was only (after) the big bang that I became curious,” he said.

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Nadia Muneer, whose back deck faces the fire site, said whatever happened is disturbing and scary. Her daughter was afraid to walk a few doors down to visit a friend.

“You don’t feel safe,” said Muneer. “You never imagined how three people died together in one car. What’s happened? So many things come in mind.”

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