AN 84-YEAR-OLD woman died after becoming trapped in her burning home.

Nellie Shaw’s body was found in an upstairs bedroom more than five hours after the blaze ripped through her home in Barrow.

Her husband Philip, who is also in his 80s, managed to escape the early morning inferno and raise the alarm.

He was taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital suffering from the effects of smoke inhalation.

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Dozens of firefighters from across East Lancashire worked for several hours to put out the blaze which started early yesterday morning.

A joint investigation between police and specialist firefighters, which is expected to take ‘some time’, has been launched.

They said the cause of the fire at the large barn conversion, opposite the entrance of Clitheroe Golf Club, was yet to be determined.

Mrs Shaw was described as a ‘lovely woman’ by neighbours who spoke of their horror at her death.
Martine Pozzi, who lives nearby, said the couple’s children lived abroad.

She said: “It is just so sad that this has happened.

“Mr and Mrs Shaw have lived in the house a long time. They are a really lovely couple and Mr Shaw is a good friend of my dad.

“Mrs Shaw was just lovely, a really, really nice woman.”

The emergency services were alerted to the blaze at 5.20am yesterday when Mr Shaw, after escaping from the building, caught the attention of a passerby on his way to work.

When fire crews arrived at the scene, in Whalley Road, they found that the building was ‘well alight’ and were told Mrs Shaw might still be inside.

They battled the flames for three hours, but were initially unable to make a search of the property because it was unsafe.

Around 10.30am, fire crews, from Clitheroe, Hyndburn, Great Harwood and Padiham, who were helped by colleagues from the urban search and rescue teams, discovered Mrs Shaw’s body in a bedroom.

Steve Morgan, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service group manager, said: “The gentleman told us that there was potentially someone within the property.

“We eventually found the lady in the property. She was in the front bedroom.”

The road was closed until around 2pm to allow for investigation work to be carried out.

Mr Morgan added: “The investigation continues into the cause of the fire and at this stage we cannot discount anything. We cannot rule out that it was deliberate.

“We have started to work really meticulously along with our colleagues to try to establish the cause.

“It is incredibly sad. It was a tragic scene for everyone involved and our thoughts are with the family at this time.”

One of Mr and Mrs Shaw’s neighbours said: “It must have been terrifying for them. What has happened is really sad. I am absolutely staggered.”

Coun Robert Thompson, who represents the Wiswell and Pendleton ward on Ribble Valley Council, said he was also saddened to hear what had happened.

He said: “It is such an awful thing to have happened and my deepest sympathies go out to the family.

“These are very tragic circumstances. The emergency services responded very quickly and did everything they could under very difficult circumstances.”

Detective Inspector Marie Howarth, from Blackburn CID, said: “The investigation is very much in its early stages and so will be working closely with the fire service to determine exactly how this fire has started.”