Man due in court over fire deaths (From York Press)

Man due in court over Norton fire deaths

9:55am Wednesday 1st August 2012 in News

A MAN has been ordered to appear in court over a fire that killed two jockeys in North Yorkshire.

Jamie Kyne and Jan Wilson died when flames tore through a block of flats in Norton in September 2009 and Peter William Brown, 38, was jailed indefinitely in December 2010 for their manslaughter.

The fire took hold as the stairwell acted like a chimney, forcing many of the occupants to jump from windows.

Last year, a North Yorkshire Fire Authority investigation revealed combustible materials had been stored in the stairwell and the self-closing mechanism on the fire door to the flat in Buckrose Court was not working properly.

Yesterday, North Yorkshire Fire Service group manager Peter Hudson said the man summonsed was “responsible for the premises”.

A statement issued by the fire service said: “North Yorkshire Fire Authority can confirm that following an investigation into a fire which occurred at Buckrose Court, near Malton , in September 2009 a man has been summonsed to appear before Scarborough Magistrates Court on August 24, 2012, regarding alleged breaches of the Regulatory Reform (fire safety) Order 2005.”

Brown, of Brotherton, near Selby , was unsuccessful in an attempt to overturn his conviction last year, by claiming his trial at Leeds Crown Court was unfair because the evidence did not rule out the possibility of the fire starting accidentally.