Man died from injuries in fire he ‘started deliberately’
A MAN died as a result of injuries sustained in a fire he “started deliberately”, an inquest heard.
Adrian Flood, 43, was taken to hospital after suffering burns covering 20% of his body during a fire that started in the bedroom of his flat in Glanfelin, Hawthorn, in Pontypridd on April 8, 2020.
Mr Flood died at Morriston Hospital three days later from complications caused by smoke inhalation.
The inquest heard Mr Flood told first responders the fire began accidentally while he was smoking a cigarette. However, further investigations showed that he was likely to have started the fire on purpose and had “put himself in peril”, according to senior coroner Graeme Hughes.
A report from South Wales
Fire and Rescue Service investigator Matthew Bradford revealed there was “evidence of clutter” piled around the bed in Mr Flood’s bedroom.
Piles of clothes and a “large amount of combustible material” were found as well as a container of cooking oil and a lighter.
The coroner said that a “number of the materials appeared to be saturated by this liquid”, and the investigator recorded the finding that “the fire was started deliberately”.
Smoke detectors in the flat were removed prior to the fire starting and placed on the bed also, although the investigator said they could not conclude who had put them there.
Described as “kind-hearted and someone that would do anything for anyone” by his family, Mr Flood had a history of mental illness and had been in contact with a community mental health team on the day he died.
However, the coroner said that although the evidence suggested Mr Flood intended to cause himself harm there was “not necessarily an intention to take his own life”, and he had not expressed suicidal thoughts to his family or mental health professional he had spoken to leading up to the incident.
The coroner said: “There is no direct evidence of suicidal ideation being advanced by Adrian. But, there is some evidence that Adrian was not in a good place on that Sunday.
“He was low in mood, he was distressed and anxious about the effects that the Covid-19 lockdown was having on him at the time.
“I am satisfied that Adrian did deliberately start the fire, that he did put himself in peril.
“But, there was not necessarily an intention to take his own life”.
Following the incident last year, Gemma Ware, who had been married to Mr Flood, said: “He was a very dedicated family man who adored his two sons”.
The couple had two children, Brandon, 19, and Benjamin, 17, and met when they were teenagers in their hometown of Beddau.
Mr Flood’s sister Leann Fry said: “I had to say goodbye to my brother over the phone [because of the coronavirus lockdown].
She described her close bond with her brother, and said the pair spoke “every single day, without fail”.
“He was extremely funny. I always said he should have been a comedian,” she added.
A narrative conclusion was recorded at inquest with a short form conclusion of Mr Flood’s cause of death being 1B smoke inhalation leading to multiple organ failure.