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A “Proud and independent” pensioner died after trying to tackle a fire at his Barnsbury home.

Raymond Lister, 86, was overcome by smoke at his home in Ripplevale Grove in February after a lamp left against his bed caused his mattress to catch light.

An inquest at St Pancras Coroner’s Court on Monday concluded that his death, caused by carbon monoxide poisoning, was accidental.

In a statement, Mr Lister’s daughter Phoebe described her father, who worked as an electrician at the Daily Mail until the 1980s, as a “proud man who wouldn’t ask for help”.

The court heard that a neighbour of Mr Lister smelled smoke in the area on returning home from dinner at around 11pm. Upon further investigation Etienne Tagtmeier realised it was coming from Mr Lister’s bedroom window and went to bang on his door while his partner called the emergency services. Carl Fisher, a passer-by who lives in the area, helped Mr Tagtmeier before kicking the door down.

Thick smoke prevented the men from entering the three-storey home but firefighters arrived shortly after and found Mr Lister collapsed on the stairs.

Firefighter Luke Goddard began CPR until an ambulance arrived but Mr Lister did not have a pulse and he was pronounced dead shortly after 1am.

The court heard that cars parked on both sides of the road meant the first fire engine was unable to get down Lambert Street, so firefighters were forced to go out on foot. This meant that the first crew arrived at the scene almost three minutes later than they should have done.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) investigator Mick Boyle explained that the fire, which was smouldering and not intense, was most likely to have started between 8pm and 9pm, when Mr Lister normally went to bed.

He said he believed that it was caused by a detachable 1920s art deco-style lamp which Mr Lister, who lived alone, had hooked close to his bed.

“It was in close proximity to the part of the bed with the deepest charring,” said Mr Boyle. “It had a 60-watt bulb, which has the potential to initiate a smouldering fire when in contact with fabric or paper.”

Mr Boyle said he believed Mr Lister discovered his horsehair mattress was smoking and turned off the power.

“I believe, being the kind of man he was, described as very independent and reluctant to ask for help, he tried to deal with the fire himself. Rather than make an attempt to leave, he went to the back bedroom sink and got a glass of water to try to extinguish the fire.”

Mr Boyle said he thought Mr Lister had then either decided to get more water or attempt an escape but was overcome by the smoke and fell unconscious on the stairs, where he was found.

The inquest heard that Mr Lister was fit for his age but was beginning to suffer from breathlessness. There were smoke detectors on the ground floor but not on the first floor, the court head.

Senior coroner for Inner North London Mary Hassell said: “If Mr Lister had been a younger and fitter person he probably wouldn’t have succumbed. But he was also terribly independent and the description the fire investigator gave is a likely fit. He was an electrician and confident about this.

“But unfortunately he was overcome and he collapsed and was unable to make good his escape.”