Exploding vacuum cleaner battery led to tragic death of popular West Midlands pub landlady
A popular West Midlands pub landlady was tragically killed by smoke inhalation after the battery to her cordless vacuum cleaner exploded.
An inquest this week was told how Ann Michelle Male, who was 58, died on the evening of July 14 this year.
Mrs Male, originally from Sutton Coldfield, was the landlady of the Fighting Cocks Inn at Stottesdon in south Shropshire having revived the country pub after completing a lifelong dream to own and run her own business.
The inquest at Shropshire Coroners Court in Shrewsbury was told Mrs Male, known as Annie, was "the life and soul of every room she entered" and a "deeply loving" person.
Senior coroner John Ellery read evidence which said that the fire service had been alerted to a blaze at the pub at around 6.52pm, after neighbours reported seeing smoke coming from a window.
Firefighters attended, forced their way into the pub and found the source of the fire in a bedroom, being confronted by thick black smoke as they opened the door.
The hearing was told that officers located the source of the fire using a thermal imaging camera, before finding Mrs Male unresponsive on the floor of the room.
Firefighters started to perform CPR, with paramedics taking over after they arrived, but sadly Mrs Male was pronounced dead at 7.40pm.
