Mansfield pensioner who died in accidental house fire 'mistakenly lit hob'

The death of 73-year-old Vera Brewer, who had dementia, after a fire at her Linby Avenue home, was described as a ‘very great tragedy’ by Mr Gordon Clow, assistant coroner for Nottinghamshire, at the conclusion of an inquest into how she died yesterday.

Mr Clow recorded a narrative verdict for Vera, who lost consciousness and died as a result of smoke inhalation following the incident on December 23, 2019.

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He said the fire started when she inadvertently turned on the gas hob in her home.

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Firefighters from Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service arrived at the house within five minutes of being mobilised and rescued Ms Brewer but she died at King’s Mill Hospital the next day.

The Service is now advising families of people with dementia to install locking valves that turn off the gas supply to the cooker to help prevent similar tragedies in future.

Mr Clow said: “This has been a very great tragedy.” But, he added: “She would have simply lost consciousness. She had no injuries directly as a result of the fire.”

Vera’s 75-year-old partner of 37 years, Barrie Green, who cared for her, was also taken to hospital suffering from shock following the fire, which left the widower ‘with nothing’.

Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service fire investigation manager Lucie Poxon said: “Our investigation concluded that the fire was likely caused by the accidental ignition of the cooking fat within the chip pan on the gas hob.

“In the hope that similar deaths might be prevented in future, we would like to recommend that households with a person with dementia, or similar condition, consider installing a locking gas cooker valve.

“These valves are key-operated and can be used to quickly and easily turn off the gas when the hob is not in use. They can be fitted for free by Cadent, the national gas supplier.”

Ms Poxon added: “We would also like to highlight the importance of having sufficient working smoke alarms and can offer Safe and Well visits and provide deep fat fryers, rather than traditional chip pan baskets.”

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