Anthony Taylor: Inquest looks at death of 84-year-old Sheffield engineer in fire at work

Anthony ‘Tony' Taylor was repairing power tools in a workshop on the first floor of Dibco Precision Engineering at 11am on November 2, 2021, when a sudden blaze trapped him in the room. The alarm was raised when the company’s director, David Dibble, heard shouting and banging coming from the repair room.

Four fire engines were scrambled to the unit on Balaclava Road, off Infirmary Road, but sadly, Tony was pronounced dead at the scene, likely after succumbing to smoke inhalation.

At the first day of his inquest today (October 24), jurors heard evidence the fire likely broke out when a rechargeable lithium iron battery violently burst into flames, due to an unknown cause. Group manager Ellie Gillatt of South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue, played a video for the jury to show how rechargeable batteries can ‘quickly and violently’ go up in flames if mishandled, and suggested Tony could have been working on the item at the time.

She said: “Lithium iron batteries can cause fires, and when they catastrophically fail they can fail quickly and quite violently. In my opinion, the lithium iron battery I found at the centre of a burnt and damaged hole in the floor was the cause of the fire.”

A damaged aerosol can was also found near to the battery, which likely helped fuel the fire.

Tragically, the fire broke out directly in front of the only exit out of the room. Ms Gillatt said: “Even though it was on the first floor, the room was more of a second storey height. A fit, young, athletic person would have struggled to escape by the window, let alone an 84-year-old.”

The jury also heard how fire officers found it difficult to make it through the building due to smoke and ‘stuff’ on the floor around the workshop in their way.

Over the course of the three-day inquest, the jury will also be asked to consider who was responsible for fire safety, if any risk assessments were carried out and how the fire came about.

Tony’s inquest was attended by his family, including his daughter and son-in-law.