Nelson couple died in blaze after portable heater 'explosion', inquest hears

An elderly couple died when a fire engulfed their home after an attempt to refuel a portable heater resulted in an "explosion".

Marlene Mumford, 84, and William Mumford, 90, died at their property at Heol Fawr, Nelson, in Caerphilly county, last December.

An inquest in Newport was told that the most likely cause of the fire was a mechanical or connection failure with the gas heater.

Assistant coroner Sarah Le Fevre said it was believed William Mumford had attempted to carry the cylinder out of the home in an effort to remove it, but that this had only caused the flames to spread.

She recorded their deaths as an accident, and the result of an "unintended act with unforeseen circumstance".

The alarm was raised by a neighbour who was in the nearby Tyler's Arms when he noticed smoke and large flames.

He and another man ran to the house where they saw a gas canister explode near the front porch with the flames rising above the height of the house.

Emergency services were initially unable to enter the property due to the extent of the damage caused by the blaze.

Firefighters reported seeing thick, black smoke "pumping out" of the property, the hearing was told.

The couple were pronounced dead at the scene.

Bridgend fire station commander Melvyn Robert Laidler said burn patterns and the location of the canister suggested William Mumford had been unable to close the cylinder and so had attempted to remove it by carrying it through the house.

A pathologist gave the cause of the couple's deaths as exposure to combustion products of fire.

"What is possible is that William realised that the fire had taken, that he realised he was unable to close the cylinder or control the fire, and therefore thought, utterly understandably, that the best course would be to try and remove the fire from the house," said the coroner.

"The fire started accidentally resulting from a mechanical or connection-related failure of a portable gas heater and gas bottle resulting in an uncontrolled gas release."

'Dad dragged me out of bed by my hair to work' - rural abuse victims want more support

Body found in burning van was a woman, police say

Watch as farmer uses tractor to shunt neighbour's truck in road row