WEDS PM: Latest on Holmbridge fire death tragedy

Apr 1 2009 By Sam Casey

Fire

NEIGHBOURS battled in vain to save an elderly man who died in a house fire in Holmbridge.

They used an axe to break down the door to 88-year-old Arthur Holmes' farmhouse on Brownhill Lane after a blaze broke out at about 9pm on Tuesday.

But they were forced back by the intense heat and smoke before fire crews arrived minutes later.

Firefighters from Holmfirth, Meltham and Huddersfield managed to bring the fire under control.

Mr Holmes, who lived alone, was pulled from the house but was later declared dead in Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.

Full story in tomorrow's Examiner.

See next page for the first report on the blaze.