Inquest warning over electrical devices in kids' bedrooms as TV sparks fire killing two children
A house fire which killed a brother and sister was probably started by a faulty television, an inquest has heard - leading a coroner to raise concerns about the number of electrical devices in youngsters' bedrooms.
Seven-year-old Sienna Jenkins and her three-year-old brother Isaac died from smoke inhalation in the blaze at their home in St Neots, Cambridgeshire on 10 December 2020.
Their mother Jade Horton suffered life-changing injuries after jumping from a second floor window. She then tried to rescue the children but the heat and intensity of the fire meant she could not get to them, an inquest in Huntingdon was told.
Coroner Elizabeth Gray said she would be writing to community fire safety teams to ask how they would deal with the increasing number of electrical devices in children's bedrooms, and the effect of doors being left open at night, allowing fires to spread more easily.
The inquest heard the fire most likely started with an electrical fault in a TV that was at the foot of Isaac's bed on the first floor.
Ms Gray, the area coroner for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, was told the house in Buttercup Avenue complied with all building regulations and had smoke alarms.
But the circumstances were described as "a perfect storm" by Peter Jones, a fire investigation officer from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service.
He said after the fire started A set of "unfortunate circumstances" combined to create a blaze that could easily have reached in excess of 1000 degrees celsius.
It was made worse by the fact that Isaac's bedroom door was open, and the layout of the three-storey house with a stairwell running from top to bottom. When the front door and top bedroom window at the back were opened, it created a chimney effect, he said, drawing heat, flame and smoke upwards.
That may then have meant the smoke alarm on the first floor landing did not sound immediately and the fire could spread, the inquest was told.
Ms Gray said as a result of the "tragic coming together of a number of factors" she would be writing to the community fire safety teams to ask them to look at how they deal with an increase in electrical devices in children's bedrooms.