Farewell, 'Diesel': inquest hears of popular character's death

David Kenneth Carden, known to friends as Diesel, died nine days after the incident at his home in Springfield Lane, Newbury, on June 20.
His friend, neighbour and latterly his carer, Lisa Smyth, told the hearing in Newbury last Wednesday, September 19, how around 8pm that day she heard Mr Carden shout: “I’m on fire,” via an intercom that social services had recently installed as a panic alarm, connected to her front room.
She said: “I belted upstairs and he was engulfed in a ball of flames. I ran into the bathroom and got a bath towel and soaked it in cold water.”
Ms Smyth described how she managed to roll Mr Carden in the towel and to douse the flames before dialling emergency services.
The inquest heard Mr Carden, who had suffered 30 per cent burns, was airlifted to a specialist unit at Salisbury District Hospital in Wiltshire, where he eventually succumbed on June 29 with family members at his bedside.
The inquest heard he had learned in February that he had terminal cancer - a fact he kept largely to himself.
Ms Smyth said that 67-year-old Mr Carden, who had recently paid an emotional visit to his parents and siblings in Australia, had become increasingly frail following a series of recent strokes and that he had been prescribed painkillers for his deteriorating condition.
Firefighters who attended the scene believed the blaze was caused by a cigarette, the inquest heard.
Assistant deputy Berkshire coroner Anna Burnside, who recorded a verdict of accidental death, praised Ms Smyth’s efforts and added: “You couldn’t have done more for your friend.”
After the hearing Ms Smyth expressed concern that the surgical cushion, which had been provided to a frail smoker, had apparently caught fire so easily.
Mr Carden was a former merchant navy chef who had lived in Bermuda and who had served aboard the QEII and Queen Mary.
A keen amateur archaeologist who was partial to a decent pint, he was a popular and well-known character around Newbury and surrounding villages, where he was renowned for his knowledge of local flora and fauna.
He was rarely seen without his trademark battered hat, thumbstick and his constant companion until her death - a scruffy rescue dog named Nellie.