Two preschoolers burned in a car fire in Gisborne have been flown to Waikato Hospital for emergency treatment.
The Gisborne hospital where they were initially treated says the boy and girl, aged one and three, are in a serious condition.
Emergency services were called to a carpark outside the Supercheap Auto branch in Gladstone Road about 4.30pm on Thursday.
The children were in the vehicle alone while their mother was inside the auto business.
Three men ran from nearby businesses when they saw smoke coming from the car.
They forced their way into the vehicle to get the children out of the back seat where an explosion and fire occurred. One of the men managed to put the fire out with an extinguisher.
A St John ambulance paramedic said the unconscious children had to be revived using CPR.
Police and the Fire Service are investigating.
