The mother of a man who died in the fatal Cameron House Hotel fire has shared her heartbreak for the victims and families of the New County Hotel blaze in Perth.
Heads of health and safety charity Scottish Hazards - which aided her campaign for answers over the 2017 blaze at Loch Lomond - added they are “devastated” for those most deeply affected by the tragic events at County Place. The joint investigation by fire and police services into the cause of the Fair City fire on January 2, which tragically claimed the lives of sisters Donna Janse Van Rensburg (44) and Sharon McLean (47), and dad Keith Russell (38), is still ongoing.
Donna’s dog Joey, a three year-old King Charles spaniel, also died. Jane Midgley lost her 32-year-old son Simon and his partner Richard Dyson, 38, in the Cameron House tragedy and said her “heart breaks” for the victims of the Perth blaze.
“It brought it all back again,” she added.
It comes after the Scottish Courts published a Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) report into the Cameron House fire, which took place on December 18, 2017, with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service accepting the recommendations highlighted. The procurator fiscal could also launch a FAI into the New County Hotel fire based on findings from the police and fire services joint investigation.
A FAI is an official inquiry into the circumstances of an unexpected death. These inquiries are usually held in the sheriff court, and offer details to the public on any deaths whose causes give rise to reasonable suspicion.
Speaking of the Cameron House FAI and the New County Hotel fire, Scottish Hazards’ trustee Louise Adamson said: “Throughout this gruelling process, they’ve shown strength beyond measure, driven by the need to stop this happening to others and so have been devastated further by the loss of three more young lives in the New County Hotel fire. We now implore all those to whom recommendations have been directed to take prompt and decisive action to prevent any more families suffering this heartbreak.”
Ian Tasker, chief executive of Scottish Hazards, urged the owners and operators of Cameron House and “other similar sleeping accommodation” to read the determination and take action to improve their safety measures. In the weeks since the fatal fire in Perth a number of former hotel employees and guests have come forward revealing their grave concerns over the condition of the building.
A week before the blaze, Barbara Stevenson and her husband had to change rooms. An “electrical short smell” had been detected on the second floor corridor, setting off the fire alarm.
Firefighters gave the all-clear after a check but a power outage in the couple’s room meant they were moved to another floor. The couple were then among those evacuated just after 5am on January 2 after the fire started. The flames are believed to have originated on the second floor.
Since the incident, it has emerged that in December the hotel was issued with a fire safety audit and three health and safety warnings from Perth and Kinross Council. The audit ordered the hotel to make 21 improvements, including concerns about the emergency lighting, fire doors and escape routes that needed to be addressed by January 13.
Rashid Hussain owns the New County Hotel through Edwin Hotels Ltd, while the hotel’s business is believed to be conducted via Perth Hospitality Ltd, another company he owns. Both are registered in London, but Mr Hussain himself is believed to live abroad. Emails to the hotel, to Mr Hussain and phone calls to his London-based accountants from reporters have gone unanswered to date.
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