The police believe that a fire which was started in a three-generation house in Paphos’ Universal area may have been started maliciously, Paphos police’s assistant operations director Michalis Nikolaou said on Tuesday.

He said investigations at the house had found that “objects” on its veranda and at the front of the property had been set on fire, with that fire then spreading inside the house.

The fire broke out shortly after 3am, with six occupants – a couple aged 74 and 73 years old, their 42-year-old son and his 40-year-old wife, and their two children, aged 12 and eight – all inside the house at the time.

The 74-year-old grandfather jumped from the building’s first floor, suffering fractures to his leg and spine, while the 40-year-old woman and her eight-year-old daughter suffered minor burns.

The grandfather remains at the Paphos general hospital, where he is undergoing treatment for his injuries, while the 12-year-old boy was transferred to the Makarios children’s hospital in Nicosia as a precaution after suffering from respiratory problems.

All four other members of the family were discharged from hospital.