A "kind" and "bubbly" mum-of-two died in a house fire after a child set a cuddly toy alight while playing, an inquest has heard. Chloe Doggett, 28, died in hospital three days after firefighters pulled her from the burning building in Tonypandy.
Assistant coroner Gaynor Kynaston reached a conclusion of accidental death during Wednesday's inquest at Pontypridd Coroners' Court. The court heard that nine people had been in the three-storey terraced house on September 21 last year, including Ms Doggett and a man who were in one of the top-floor bedrooms. A child playing in one of the other bedrooms on the top floor had used a lighter to set fire to a toy before the blaze spread rapidly across the home, the inquest heard. Ms Doggett was the only person inside unable to run out and she later died of a brain injury.
Her mum Emma Doggett said after the hearing: "She was just the most kind person who would do anything and help anyone. She would not see anyone struggle. She was really bubbly and went through a lot with her children through no fault of her own. She was a good mother."
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Ms Doggett, who grew up in Swindon and had lived in Ystradgynlais prior to her death, was a "great child", said her mother. "She was popular, funny, and had lots of friends. I would say she had a great childhood."
Emma said her daughter "got into a bad crowd" at secondary school. She added: "Chloe was still a bubbly character but a bit more disobedient to me. She was not following instructions and was coming home late. She was not in trouble with the police."
As a young adult Ms Doggett moved to south Wales where she was in a relationship and became a mother. She spent time working in Argos and as a florist as well as doing a painting and decorating course at Neath Port Talbot College. Ms Doggett had two children from different relationships and experienced issues with alcohol and drugs, her mother said in a statement to the court.
Ms Doggett for a time struggled with substance misuse but had "really matured" by 2021, according to her mother. However she then experienced traumatic personal and health issues and she and her partner split up. Her mother added: "She started mixing with the wrong people in and her behaviour spiralled. She admitted to me she had been taking cocaine and struggling to sleep."
Detective constable Joel Rees, of South Wales Police, said emergency services received calls from people outside the house at 4.37pm on the day of the fire. Those reports of the fire came at the same time Ms Doggett was starting a video call with a friend. DC Rees said it was a "hugely chaotic" incident in which the fire spread "extremely quickly" with no working fire alarms in the property.
Three children were in the house at the time. One of them later told their mother they had been playing with a lighter they had found in the home. They said they had set alight a cuddly toy in one of the upstairs bedrooms causing the house fire. DC Rees said this admission was consistent with the fire investigator's report.
The man who was with Ms Doggett in another upstairs bedroom told the inquest he had woken from a sleep amid shouts of "fire" and opened the bedroom door to see black smoke coming from the other bedroom where the fire had started and a child was inside. "I went into the next room to save the child," he said.
"I saw [the child] in the fire burning. My reaction was to run through the fire and save them. When I went through the door I shouted: 'Chloe get out.'
"I ran through the flames and put [the child] on my shoulder and ran downstairs and outside. That's when I said: 'Where's Chloe?'"
The man said he had thought Ms Doggett would go downstairs when he initially shouted to her. He described the fire as "crazy" by the time he was outside and he was unable to get back up the stairs. "It went from a bedroom to blowing the roof off," he added. He said the child he saved needed treatment for smoke inhalation as did two other children in the house.
The residents on lower floors had first learned of the fire from neighbours who came into the house to warn them. One resident said that once she got outside she could see black smoke billowing out of the house while neighbours were trying to throw a paint can and use a ladder to smash the upstairs bedroom window to get to Ms Doggett. The fire was "sending roof tiles everywhere", she added.
The court also heard a statement from Phillipa Stevens, Ms Doggett's friend who was speaking to her on the video call. She said they spoke most days and on that occasion she could see her friend lying on a bed with her hair tied in a ponytail.
"I recall telling her she looked good," said Ms Steven. "She was happy in herself. I recall [the man in the bedroom] coming onto the call and saying: 'Who are you talking to?' Shortly after this I heard someone shouting: 'Chloe'. I could see Chloe getting off the bed with quickness and intensity and she tossed her phone on the floor. The screen was face down and went black."
JJ Davies, a firefighter who happened to be in the area at the time, said his daughter lived near the house and had alerted him to the flames at 4.40pm. He immediately attended but found it was impossible to get up the stairs without water and protective equipment. Minutes later fire crews attended and found Ms Doggett in one of the upstairs bedrooms.
Morriston Hospital consultant Peter Drew said Ms Doggett was found in cardiac arrest and CPR was administered for 45 minutes near the scene of the fire, which saw signs of life return. She was taken to the hospital with burns to her face, abdomen, thighs, and other parts of her body though Mr Drew described these as "superficial". She also had cuts to her foot and arm consistent with attempts to break a window. Her condition deteriorated over the next three days and her death was confirmed on September 24 due to a "massive" brain injury," said Mr Drew.
Forensic scientist Martin Crookes said there was additional internal glazing on the bedroom windows which made them difficult to break. He found the most likely cause of the fire was "application of a naked flame to combustible materials".
The toxicology report showed Ms Doggett had paracetamol in her system as well as a small amount of cocaine metabolite which could have been from historic use, the inquest heard. Ms Doggett's autopsy showed she had breaks to her ribs consistent with resuscitation attempts and an extensive soot deposit in her airways. The cause of death was given as a brain injury known as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, caused by cardiac arrest, which had in turn been caused by smoke inhalation.
The assistant coroner Ms Kynaston said: "It was a member of the public who alerted emergency services to the fire, which suggests it was obvious to passers-by before it was obvious to those in the property. The time of the report, 4.37pm, coincides with the time of the phone call to Chloe. We know at that time the residents were not aware but shortly after became aware because it appears people had come in from the street to say the house was on fire.
"[The man who was in the bedroom with Chloe] has clarified that when he woke up there wasn't smoke in the room but when he opened the door the smoke came into the room and very quickly he wasn't able to see far in front of him. He was shouting at Chloe to leave... He thought she was going to leave the property as he did."
Recording a conclusion of accidental death she added: "I accept and find that the fire was started by a child playing with the item... Despite attempts to escape the scene Chloe was overcome by smoke inhalation and rendered unconscious. After being conveyed to Morriston Hospital in Swansea she did not regain consciousness and died from her injuries."
Ms Kynaston expressed her condolences to Ms Doggett's family and said it was clear she was loved. The assistant coroner added: "This is a tragic, tragic death and one that will stay with me."
Ms Doggett's best friend Melania, who sat with Chloe's family during the inquest, said after the hearing: "She was ambitious. We had a painting and decorating business together and we had just got back to work after some time off. She had worked hard to get her diploma in college and this was going to be her next chapter. There was a lot Chloe still wanted to do."
Shortly after the fire police interviewed a 26-year-old man but he was later released without charge. An investigation into the fire revealed it was "not the result of a criminal act".
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