An inquest into the death of a Jameston woman, who died as a result of a house fire, could not ascertain the cause of the blaze. Although Pembrokeshire coroner, Mr. Michael Howells, delivered a narrative verdict that 77-year- old Mrs. Dorothy Brown, of Kiln House, died as a result of injuries sustained during the fire at her home, evidence heard from a firefighter who had attended the scene back in February, proved inconclusive as to its cause. The inquest, at Milford Haven last week, heard that Mrs. Brown's daughter and son-in-law, who she lived with, popped out to a chemist in Tenby for a mere 20 minutes, only to return home and find smoke coming out of the roof of the house. When the couple left, Mrs. Brown was happily seated safely in the living room with her dinner on her lap, explained son-in-law Patrick Ormond, who on his return to the house made his way through the smoke and managed to pull his unconscious mother-in-law out of the building, while his wife 'phoned the fire brigade. Mr. Ormond also fed a garden hose-pipe through one of the windows to try and dampen the fire. Pembroke Dock firefighter, Peter Jevons, who attended the blaze, explained that a number of factors could have caused the fire, which originated in the right-hand side of the room. He listed a pile of clothing on the floor, a hair dryer, a 'Rayburn' stove and an extension lead, as possible factors. However, as a double socket had melted, it was impossible to determine exactly what had caused the fire to start. Mrs. Brown was taken to Withybush Hospital, Haverfordwest, and later transferred to Morriston Hospital, Swansea, where she was treated for burns to her face, scalp and hands. She passed away a few weeks later, on March 30, with a post mortem determining the medical cause of death as - congestive cardiac failure, ischaemic heart disease, burns and cerebro atrophy. "Mrs. Brown was a well looked after lady by her daughter and son-in-law and was left safely in her house for a short period of time. Firefighters have stated that there was nothing conclusive that they could put their fingers on as to the cause of the fire, with a number of possible factors listed," said coroner Mr. Howells, before delivering a narrative verdict that Mrs. Brown died as a result of injuries sustained in a fire at her home.
