Couple died in fire while building their 'forever home', inquest hears

‘Inseparable’ couple who were planning to get married next year died in house fire after blaze broke out while they were renovating their ‘forever home’, inquest hears

• Rebecca Foster, 32, and Kieran Naylor, 33, were planning to get married in 2024 
• They died in a blaze at their property in Daresbury, Cheshire, on 12 December

A couple who were planning to get married next year died in a house fire while they were renovating their ‘forever home’, an inquest heard. 

Rebecca Foster, 32, and her fiancé Kieran Naylor, 33, were pulled from their home on Delph Lane in Daresbury, Cheshire, after a blaze broke out at the property on 12 December last year.

Cheshire Police said the couple suffered serious injuries and were taken to Warrington and Whiston hospitals in critical condition.

Ms Foster, a company director, died in hospital the next evening while Mr Naylor died two weeks later on Boxing Day.

An inquest into their deaths in Warrington on Monday heard they had been together for ten years and were due to get married in Cyprus in 2024.

Rebecca Foster, 32, and her fiancé Kieran Naylor, 33, died in a house fire as they renovated their ‘forever home’, an inquest heard

Ms Foster (pictured) and Mr Naylor were pulled from their home on Delph Lane in Daresbury, Cheshire, after a blaze broke out at the property on 12 December last year

Ms Foster’s dad, John Foster, told the hearing in a loving tribute: ‘They were massively in love. They spent all of their time together.’

The inquest heard the home was their fourth house they had renovated together, and was ‘meant to be their forever home’ where they would live with their dog, Skye, and cat, Nyla, who were ‘like their children’.

Mr Foster said the couple bought the home in August 2021 as a project they could complete together and Mr Naylor, as a cable jointer, was doing 90 per cent of the work himself.

He added that some rooms in the house were ‘back to brick’ but the garden was the only thing completed.

Mr Foster said police asked them to go to the hospital as their daughter was in critical condition after the house fire.

He told the hearing they were told she was ‘brain dead’, adding: ‘They were keeping her hooked on machines. It was that point we knew she was going to die.’

With bruising and burns to her body, Ms Foster’s family stayed with her until she died.

Mr Naylor’s dad, Paul Naylor, said the couple were ‘inseparable’ and had celebrated their engagement in 2022, and were due to be married in 2024.

He told the hearing when his son was rushed to hospital, he was told he was ‘seriously unwell and was likely to succumb to his injuries’. 

Despite three major operations and fighting for his life for two weeks, Mr Naylor tragically died on Boxing Day.

The inquest previously heard from fire investigator, Jonathan Hill, that a definite cause of the fire could not be determined due to the property being ‘unsafe’ and the extensive damage caused. 

However, he said it was likely to have started in the ground floor lounge room or gaming room, which was under renovation.

Ms Foster, a company director, died in hospital the next evening while Mr Naylor (pictured) died two weeks later on Boxing Day

The hearing heard a statement from a senior paramedic who arrived at the scene shortly before 1:20am that morning. 

He said ‘orange flames could be seen clearly’ as well as a large police and fire presence.

From police and paramedic evidence, the inquest heard both Ms Foster and Mr Naylor were pulled from the burning building from the first floor bedroom window. 

Mr Naylor was ‘unresponsive’ and unable to breathe on his own for around 30 minutes.

But Ms Foster required more CPR attempts for around an hour. 

As fire crews worked to bring her heartbeat back, the senior paramedic attempted other life-saving intervention including oxygen and adrenaline. 

A heartbeat was eventually detected at around 1:46am.

Ms Foster was rushed to Warrington Hospital where resuscitation attempts were again carried out until she was ventilated and sedated and taken to ICU. 

The hearing heard how tests soon showed she suffered a hypoxic brain injury due to smoke inhalation and there were ‘no clinical signs of life’.

A statement read out to the court by assistant coroner Alexander Frodsham said ‘tests showed the severity of her condition and it was grossly abnormal’. 

The inquest heard how despite a cause of the fire being uncertain, police and fire crews ruled out any third-party involvement.

Recording narrative conclusions, Mr Frodsham said Ms Foster suffered a hypoxic brain injury following smoke inhalation after the house fire, adding: ‘On December 13, Rebecca’s condition deteriorated and brain stem tests confirmed very sadly she had passed away.’

Senior paramedics arrived at the scene of the blaze on Delph Lane in Daresbury, Cheshire, shortly before 1:20am on the morning of 12 December

The coroner described how Mr Naylor was resuscitated at the time and rushed to Whiston Hospital with ‘extensive burns’.

Despite three operations, on December 25 Mr Naylor’s condition rapidly deteriorated and he died on December 26 from multi-organ failure. 

Mr Frodsham said the medical cause of death was multi-organ failure due to 60 per cent of Mr Naylor’s body surface being covered in burns.

Mr Frodsham told the families: ‘It must have been a terrible shock, while both were adults, they were still your children. As parents, we don’t expect to lose our children. I’m very sorry this has happened and I hope you have some answers.’

Loving tributes were previously shared for the couple, who relatives said would be ‘together forever’.

Mr Naylor’s family said: ‘Kieran really was the best son, brother and uncle that anyone could have wished for and he will be sorely missed by everyone who had the pleasure to have known him. 

‘Kieran and Rebecca are now reunited forever and they will always be in our hearts.’

Ms Foster’s family said: ‘Rebecca was a loving and caring daughter and our lives have been absolutely torn apart by her death. 

‘She and Kieran made the perfect couple, and the pair were planning to spend the rest of their lives together, but sadly they will never be able to fulfil their dreams.’

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