Distressed witnesses of a brutal incident that's left a child dead and other family members seriously injured in Hamilton, have recalled harrowing details of the scene

Police launched a homicide investigation early yesterday, after responding to a report of an assault on Douglas Cres in the suburb of Fairfield.

Witnesses told our newsroom the injured people are the child's mother and other relatives.

A 34-year-old man, also seriously injured but with injuries police believe were self-inflicted, was put under police guard at the hospital, where he remains.