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Pembrokeshire couple died in mystery house fire - inquest

FAMILY PHOTO David and Margaret EdwardsFAMILY PHOTO
Their families described David and Margaret Edwards as well known and respected members of the community

A married couple died in a house fire, the cause of which remains a mystery, an inquest has heard.

David Bowen Edwards, 60, was the main carer for his wife Margaret Eleanor Edwards, 55, who had mobility issues and slept downstairs in a medical bed.

The couple - described as being devoted to each other - were found dead at home in St Dogmaels, Pembrokeshire, in the early hours of 11 December 2022.

The inquest heard an investigator could not be certain what started the fire.

A hearing in Haverfordwest was told the couple met 35 years ago and had been married for 18 years.

Police were called to their small terraced house on a narrow street in St Dogmaels which was said to be "well alight".

Coroner's officer, PC James Lang-Ford said flames were coming through the roof and police had to force the front door open.

Mrs Edwards was found in an armchair and was pronounced dead just after 02:30 after unsuccessful attempts at CPR.

Her husband's body was recovered a few hours later from a downstairs room - it is believed the bed containing Mr Edwards fell from the first floor as it collapsed.

A post-mortem examination found Mr Edwards died as the result of burns while his wife died as the result of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Floral tributes and emergency vehicles at fire scene
Floral tributes were left at the scene following the fire at St Dogmaels, Pembrokeshire

A fire investigation report, read by fire scene investigator Stephen Christopher Rowlands, said it was a "very, very cold evening" and the retained crew responded "slower than normal" because of the conditions.

Crews managed to make it to the first floor, but had to withdraw because of the ferocity of the fire shortly before the floor collapsed.

Mr Rowlands explained that a finger tip search was carried out and a number of items were examined, including cable reels, hair straighteners, and the gas supply.

There was no evidence of smoking as a cause and Mr Rowlands concluded that it was likely that the fire started in the downstairs bedroom but "couldn't say with 100% certainty what started the fire".

Assistant coroner Gareth Lewis told the inquest that the carbon monoxide levels in Mrs Edwards' blood were 90.1 - anything over 50 is normally fatal.

He concluded that both Mr and Mrs Edwards died as the result of an accident in their home.

Mr Lewis added that there was some evidence of a "lack of servicing and maintenance" of the mechanical bed and mattress provided to Mrs Edwards by Pembrokeshire Community Equipment Service, and that there would be improved monitoring of the equipment in future.