A WIRRAL pensioner has died after a fire ripped through his Eastham home.

Firefighters were called to the Tudor-style home of 82-year-old Bernard Lewis on Stanley Lane at around 4am last Wednesday - it is believed the blaze was caused by a lamp.

Mr Lewis and his wife had to be rescued from their bedroom following the blaze on the ground floor of their property.

They were taken to Arrowe Park Hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation but Mr Lewis later died in hospital.

An inquest will be held to determine the cause of his death.

Two other women who had made their own way out of the property – were also taken to hospital as a precaution.

In the wake of the tragic death, Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service have visited hundreds of homes in a bid to raise awareness of the dangers electrical appliances can cause,

The day-long campaign, which took place on Tuesday, aimed to highly safety messages including not overloading plug sockets and keeping the area around electrical appliances free from clutter that could catch fire.

In total 260 properties were visited – out of those 84 had home fire safety checks completed by firefighters and fire prevention staff and 176 had fire safety leaflets delivered – highlighting the safety areas mentioned below.

Four further home fire safety check appointments were made for the days following yesterday and four properties that could be more vulnerable if a fire were to occur were identified.

People are also urged to ensure appliances are in good working order and they should ensure electrics are checked by a qualified electrician.

Other messages being highlighted include the dangers of unsafe heating. Portable heaters may be seen as a cost-effective option for keeping warm to heat one room rather than the whole house. However, they are easy to knock over and pose a risk if they are next to flammable materials.

Firefighters and prevention staff will also highlight the importance of planning an escape route in your home, in case a fire were to occur, and making sure everyone in the property knows it.

Group Manager Paul Murphy, district manager for Wirral, said: “Although we work in our communities throughout the year we also carry out specific, targeted work, particularly following a serious incident, to help highlight important fire safety messages to help to keep people in communities safe. We will be visiting homes and highlighting information including the importance of having working smoke alarms on each level of the home and fire safety regarding electrical items.

Wirral Globe:
Wirral firefighters during the campaign in Eastham today.

“Following the first call to our fire control, firefighters were quickly on scene, rapidly deployed on arrival and brought an elderly man and woman, who were in a first floor bedroom, out of the property. The fire was located on the ground floor of the property when firefighters arrived at the scene. Flames were visible through a ground floor window and smoke was issuing from open windows on the first floor. The property was severely smoke-logged.

“The man who was brought out of the property was unconscious and he was handed into the care of paramedics. Firefighters led the elderly woman from the first floor and also handed her to paramedics. Sadly, the elderly man died in hospital.

“Two other women, who were out of the property when firefighters arrived, were also taken to hospital for precautionary checks.”

To arrange a Home Fire Safety Check call 0800 7315958. For free fire safety advice go to merseyfire.gov.uk