Tragic House Fire Claims Life of 37-Year-Old Mother of Four as Husband Attempts Heroic Rescue

A MUM-of-four died in a “ferocious” house fire as her husband desperately tried to save her by scaling a drainpipe, an inquest heard.

Kate Mulcahy, 37, was found dead after the horror blaze broke out at a £1.2m property at Ramsden Farm in Middleton, , in November 2024.

Rochdale Coroners’ Court was told Mrs Mulcahy had attended a friend’s baby shower before returning home at around 1.30am on November 10.

Her husband, John Mulcahy, woke to the sound of a smoke alarm at 3.51am.

He safely evacuated their twin sons and two daughters to a neighbouring property before making frantic attempts to rescue his wife.

The court heard the couple had been experiencing relationship difficulties and the property had recently been placed on the market.

Mrs Mulcahy was sleeping alone in an attic room on the top floor – where the blaze is believed to have originated – while Mr Mulcahy and the children slept on the floor below.

After finding himself unable to force entry into the top-floor room from inside the house, Mr Mulcahy scaled a drainpipe onto the roof, the court heard.

The desperate dad smashed a skylight, and pulled away tiles in a frantic attempt to reach her, the inquest was told.

He was ultimately driven back by the intensity of the flames.

Neighbour Tim Ainsworth described hearing loud bangs and dog barking before Mr Mulcahy arrived at his door in “sheer terror,” dropping off the children while screaming in panic.

Mr Ainsworth, whose hair and forehead were later singed by the heat, attempted to enter the property but was turned back by a “wall of fire,” concluding that no one inside could have survived.

Firefighters tackled the blaze and discovered Mrs Mulcahy’s body inside the property.

A post mortem concluded Mrs Mulcahy died as the result of “burns and the inhalation of fire fumes”,

Forensic pathologist Dr Jamie Robinson said he found no evidence of an assault, injury or underlying disease.

Dr Robinson said Mrs Mulcahy likely to have been rendered unconscious quickly and that there was no evidence of “a prolonged period of survival”.

Forensic scientist Martin Crookes said he believed the loud bangs would have been the result of “roof windows failing”.

He said the fact the front door and attic bedroom door were open would likely have created a “chimney effect”, with oxygen sucked in, fuelling the blaze.

He said he believed the “seat of the fire” was in the attic room but that he was unable to reliably determine the precise cause.

The entire room was engulfed in flames, he added, which made the investigation “very difficult”.

Detective Inspector Kim Tallis-Hines said she was satisfied there was no evidence of any suspicious circumstances or third-party involvement.

Coroner Mr Salt, concluding Mrs Mulcahy’s death was accidental, said: “These are circumstances that have been thoroughly investigated.

“Sadly, for various reasons, we don’t know 100 percent what took place.”

A number of flowers and tributes were placed on the front lawn in honour of the mum-of-four at the time.