Precise cause of fatal Burley blaze unknown, say Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service

A BURLEY man who had dementia died from smoke inhalation and severe burns after a fire engulfed the top floor of his home as he slept, an inquest heard.

It was believed the fire that killed David Ratford (67) at his Esdaile Lane property on 16th July last year was caused by an electrical fault during a heat wave.

Winchester Coroners’ Court was told Mr Ratford’s wife Annie had been sleeping in an outbuilding at the time because of the heat and her husband’s condition.

She had spent the evening before the fire watching television with him before he went upstairs to bed at around 10.30pm.

Mrs Ratford said she went to bed around midnight, and was alerted to the fire when she was woken by a “huge explosion”.

She said: “I ran in through the back door and I could get in and open the lounge door. There was fire coming down the stairs. I just stood there and screamed for David. There was no reply. I shut the door again and then I ran outside and down the road screaming.”

Fire crews were called to the scene and began tackling the blaze, which had spread to neighbouring houses.

In a report, fire crew manager Peter Allan said the property’s whole top floor and roof were fully alight when crews arrived, with flames reaching 25 feet in the air above the roofline.

He spoke to Mrs Ratford in the property’s garden and she confirmed David was still inside, the inquest heard.

Mr Allan wrote: “It was obvious from the moment we arrived that crews wouldn’t have been able to enter the property… due to the severity of the fire and the collapse of the first-floor roof.”

By the morning the building’s entire top floor was gone, the inquest heard, except for an immersion tank “sticking out” of the wreckage.

Fire investigator Lauren Webb, who spent three days examining the house after the blaze, said the explosion heard by Mrs Ratford was probably the top floor windows blowing out because of the fire.

Ms Webb told the inquest she would have expected to see a “lot more damage” if the building’s immersion heater had blown up. The inquest heard the home had several solar panels with a power inverter in the attic.

Ms Webb said it was “impossible” to find the exact cause of the fire because of the damage done to the building, adding: “(The fire) most likely did start in the roof space and remained undetected for some time before it broke through.”

Coroner Christopher Wilkinson put it to her: “You can’t say for sure the precise cause, but you can’t rule out an electrical supply fault, possibly to do with this inverter.”

Ms Webb agreed.

The inquest heard Mr Ratford had been suffering from severe dementia for the last two years and had lost his ability to speak, read, write and interact with everyday objects.

The coroner said he was confident Mr Ratford would not have had the ability to interfere with the building’s power supply or solar panels inverter.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr Wilkinson said: “It’s quite clear this fire was unexpected and unintended. These proceedings cannot provide every explanation you (Mrs Ratford) would want, but I hope they have provided some clarity for you and your family.

“I’m desperately sorry that David lost his life under these circumstances.”