A serving police officer is in mourning after his wife and two young children died in a Boxing Day fire at their home in Gloucestershire. The fire broke out in the early hours of 26 December at a stone cottage in Brimscombe Hill, Stroud. The father, who has not been named, desperately tried to save his family but was beaten back by the flames.
Detective Superintendent Ian Fletcher of Gloucestershire Police said the parents were woken by the blaze and attempted to reach the children, aged seven and four, in the back bedroom. The father smashed his way out through a bathroom window to try to access the children's room from outside but could not enter. He then tried to re-enter via the bathroom but the fire had taken hold. He went downstairs to force entry through doors but failed.
Fire crews were called at 3am to a 'well-established' fire. The mother, in her late 30s, and one child have been found dead; search teams are still recovering the body of the second child. The father was taken to hospital for treatment. The fire is not being treated as suspicious and is believed to have been a tragic accident.
The family were well known and loved in the community, according to Chloe Turner, leader of Stroud District Council. Gloucestershire's temporary chief constable, Maggie Blyth, described the incident as an 'unimaginable tragedy'. The scene remains cordoned off due to structural instability.
