68-year-old mother recovers from cancer and is killed by a fierce fire triggered by an old box plug – now her daughter demands better fire education

A mother, who is recovering from cancer treatment, was tragically killed after an old box plug triggered a devastating fire, devouring her home.

The fire was triggered by an ancient electrical outlet and torn apart at Wendy Verne-Cole’s home in Barry, South Wales on April 18, 2024.

The brave emergency responder tried to perform CPR in her garden before a 68-year-old man was driving away to an ambulance.

Eventually, a mother who had only recently received positive results after cancer treatment was taken to Morriston Hospital.

Here, her beloved daughter, Sydney, was told that her doting mother was not spared within minutes of her arrival with her partner Jack.

Sydney told MailOnline: “The receptionist walked up to find someone, I turned to Jack, and I said: “I think they were going to take me into the room and tell me she was gone. ”

“That’s exactly what happened.”

Recalling life-changing events, the 26-year-old initially believed that there might have been a “small” fire before she was greeted by a woodcarving childhood.

“There are three fire trucks and many people. I just remember running out before the car stopped, crying and screaming, “Where is she?”

Unfortunately, after her treatment, one’s mother was killed in the fire – thought to have been stuffed out of an old box, which swallowed her home

“I can only see all the smoke. I was not allowed to get close to the house, they blocked everything. I was probably there talking to a million different people for hours. ”

She added: “I had to see her briefly in the ambulance and I was too scared to be too close. I remember thinking about her being so uncomfortable and vulnerable during her treatment.”

Before her death, Wendy, who had cancer for about three years, had her radiation therapy treatments succeeded, although she continued to monitor lung lesions.

“I think that’s why I’m so shocked. [Her death] Sydney added: ‘She has gone through a lot. I once said to her, “Just think about everything you’ve been through.”

Sydney’s affectionate thought of her “best partner” and creative mother reveals that despite not having a lot of money, her mother always strives to make her childhood as special as possible.

“I remember when I was young, I didn’t have a lot of money, so we would go into the back garden and she asked me to just draw sheds and paint rocks,” she said. “In our corridor, we created collages from magazines.

“She just made me as complete as creative freedom – we did it together.

“We didn’t have the money to go on vacation, but she still made everything special.”

Now her loving daughter Sydney (pictured) calls for better fire education around old appliances

Remember her “resilent” mother Wendy (pictured), Sydney recalls that she always tries to make her childhood as creative as possible.

‘She’s been there anyway, even if she’s in a bad mood, I know I can call her and she’s there,” she said.

“For me, it didn’t sink to a certain extent. I’m still shocked, still taking care of mom mode, I have to let her happen to it.

Two days before the devastating fire, her mother looked back at their last moment together, and her mother was pleased to share images of their Polish ancestors.

She said: “She didn’t like super phones because she was getting older, and we were going through old photos when we were sitting in her bed and she was just showing me their photos.

She added: “When I asked, “Who are these people? “When she was like,’I don’t know, they are our Polish ancestors, and it’s very interesting.

‘Anyway, he was always there even if she was in a bad mood or anything else, and I knew I could call her and she was there anyway. To me, it didn’t sink to some extent.

The moment she first established her courage to enter her mother’s house, the 26-year-old described how her mother’s room, wallpaper and mattress turned black by the fierce fire.

“I still can’t believe the amount of damage,” she said.

“Many of her rooms were burned down, and the entire room upstairs would cause smoke damage. Her paintings have heat damage, I need to try to recover, and my grandmother’s paintings and a lot of stuff in my room.

“Unfortunately, they cleaned my mom’s room and they put it into my old room, so I need to go through a lot of things right now trying to save memories, but like everything smells like.”

It is understood that the general view of the road that killed the Wendy Fire has taken place

Marc Davies, home security manager for South Wales Fire and Rescue Services, warns of the danger of electrical failure in homes (stock images of box plugs)

She added: “When she used to model by the bed, she had another cute picture and I was so sad that I disappeared, but thankfully, I found another one.”

Now Sydney is calling for better fire education around the risks of defects and old electrical equipment in the house after the mother’s tragedy and sudden death.

“This is one of those weird things, you don’t even consider the age you were when you inserted the extension line into the wall,” she added.

She said her mother was a “very old school”, she said: “She had a flip phone and she might have that extended leader because God knows how long it takes for her to go.

The biggest thing is to check and think how long you have to expand your needs as well as the box plug.

“Because there is a lot of power in our sockets, unfortunately, there’s only one day too much.”

Marc Davies, home security manager for South Wales Fire and Rescue Services, told MailOnline: “The faulty electrical is the second leading cause of fire after cooking, so it is important to make sure the plugs and sockets are not damaged.

‘Check visible cables and clues in good condition, avoid socket overload, and always turn off electrical items when not in use.

“When replacing old electrical equipment, we recommend buying from a well-known retailer and checking the equipment is CE or UKCA certification.”

It is understood that firefighting and rescue in South Wales are still investigating the fire.

Donated to Gofundme, Sydney, for her mother’s funeral Click here.