An inquest into the deaths of two firefighters at a Southampton tower block in 2010 has recorded verdicts of death by misadventure.
Alan Bannon and James Shears died as they battled to control a blaze at the 15-storey Shirley Towers block on 6 April 2010.
In a narrative verdict delivered on 10 July, the jury said:
"Firefighters Alan Bannon and James Shears died from sudden exposure to initially intense heat from 20:38 to 20:41 and thereafter to excessive heat whilst dealing with a fire in a flat on the ninth floor of the high-rise tower block, Shirley Towers.
“Obvious precautions to prevent the fire occurring were not taken. In addition, operating conditions for all firefighters involved became extremely difficult and dangerous and this significantly contributed to the deaths of firefighters Alan Bannon and James Shears.
“Numerous factors have been identified as being relevant in the chain of causation which could have affected the eventual outcome and which, where appropriate, will form the basis of recommendations to improve safety in the future."
Speaking after the verdict, chief officer of Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, John Bonney, said:
“As the chief officer of Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service I have been committed to learn from what happened at Shirley Towers, both for the families but also to protect my firefighters in the future. The inquest has also heard how we have already made changes in equipment, training and procedures. But there are also national implications that arise from this fire and I am already making arrangements to ensure that the fire service as a whole, across the country, benefits from the learning from this tragedy.
“I cannot, however, guarantee to take my firefighters out of harm’s way at every incident. To make them totally safe on all occasions would mean that they could not do their job to protect and save the lives of others. Something that Jim and Alan did themselves at Shirley Towers. We can learn, but we cannot keep them from the difficult and dangerous work that firefighters have to do.”
Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said:
“The Fire Brigades Union and Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have worked together to agree 10 key recommendations. We will be raising those recommendations and our concerns with the fire minister to ensure lessons learned from tragedies like this are not lost or forgotten in the future.”
Watch John Bonney read his statement in full:
