Family tributes to ‘loving’ boy killed in blaze
Parents ‘distraught’ after fire tragedy
THE PARENTS of a four-yearold boy who died in a house fire in Keighley have described their son as a “happy, sweet child” who “loved everybody”.
Nathan Harrison died in hospital after the fire at a house in Sunnyhill Grove at 2pm on Monday.
He was taken from the property by emergency crews, along with his brother Matthew, ten.
They were transported to hospital suffering from serious injuries linked to smoke inhalation. Nathan died in hospital while Matthew was said to be recovering yesterday.
Nathan’s mother Jodie Collins said: “Our beautiful boy Nathan was the most loving, happy sweet child and he loved everybody.
“He was the closest person to Matthew, his brother, and now he has sadly gone,”
Nathan’s father Chris Harrison said: “We all loved Nathan dearly. We are all distraught. He was a beautiful little boy. We will miss him.”
Inquiries are continuing into the cause of the blaze. Residents were this week in a state of shock and spoke of how emergency crews took the boy and his brother out stretchers.
Julie Mitchell, 35, who lives next door to the family, heard the boys’ mother crying out for help after the fire started in the back bedroom of their property.
She said: “She was screaming for her little boy.
“It’s so sad, he was the same age as my little girl.”
Det Supt Simon Atkinson of West Yorkshire Police said: “Ini-
of the house on
We are all distraught. He was a beautiful little boy. We will miss him.
Nathan’s father Chris Harrison
tial enquiries are under way with colleagues in the fire service to determine the cause of this fire and are at a very early stage.
“Clearly this has been a tragic incident in which a young child has lost his life and a full investigation will be carried out.”
West Yorkshire Fire Service has confirmed that the property was fitted with two smoke alarms, but whether they were operational at the time the fire broke out is still to be determined.
Dave Walton, Assistant Chief Fire Officer for West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, said this week: “The cause of the fire, which was contained to the back bedroom, remains under investigation.”
In October last year a girl of two died in a house fire in South Yorkshire started by a young boy playing unsupervised with a cigarette lighter.
Libby-Jayne Hornsby and the boy were being looked after by other boys aged 12 and 15 while her mother was at a majorette marching band practice.
Eight disposable cigarette lighters were scattered around the rented house in Conisbrough, where Libby was trapped in the bedroom. During the girl’s inquest, a coroner raised concerns that there were no smoke alarms in the house.