Fashion designer Fionnghuala Shearman, known as Nu, died alongside her daughter, Eve, aged seven, and son, Ohner, aged four, despite the efforts of her husband.<\/p>\n
Her husband, Tom Shearman, an officer with Gloucestershire Police, attempted to rescue his wife and two children but was beaten back by the severity of the fire and was taken to hospital for treatment. He has since been discharged.<\/p>\n
Emergency services were called to a mid-terrace Cotswold stone cottage on Brimscombe Hill, near Stroud<\/a>, Gloucestershire<\/a>, at 3am on Friday.<\/p>\n Detective superintendent Ian Fletcher told reporters outside Gloucestershire Police<\/a> HQ that the mother and father had been awoken by the fire and had attempted to reach their children in the rear bedroom.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have been unable to get to the back bedroom due to the voracity of the fire,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe father has smashed his way out of the house through a bathroom window in order to try to access the children\u2019s bedroom via the outside.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Detective superintendent Ian Fletcher said the mother and father had been woken by the fire (PA)<\/p>\n \u201cHe has been unable to enter the property via that bedroom window.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has then tried to re-enter the property through the bathroom window, by which stage the fire has taken hold in the bathroom, and he\u2019s unable to get back into the upstairs bedrooms.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has subsequently gone downstairs and tried to force entry via the front and the back door but has been unable to get back inside the property.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is at this point that our colleagues from emergency services have attended and have started managing and dealing with that fire.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Fletcher said the fire was believed to have started on the ground floor and investigations were ongoing to establish the cause, but it was not being treated as suspicious.<\/p>\n The extent of the fire has destroyed the roof, the ceilings and the stairs, as well as causing other significant internal damage.<\/p>\n Mr Fletcher described the anguish the officer is going through at being unable to rescue his wife and children.<\/p>\n A GoFundMe fundraising campaign was launched on Sunday to help Mr Shearman, and more than 5,000 people have made donations totalling over \u00a3125,000.<\/p>\n The original \u00a3110,000 target has since been increased to \u00a3190,000.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n The fire destroyed the roof, the ceilings and the stairs of the home (PA)<\/p>\n \u201cWe are not treating this as a suspicious incident at this time,\u201d Mr Fletcher said.<\/p>\n \u201cThis would appear to be a tragic accident that occurred in the early hours of Boxing Day. The surviving member of this family is a serving police officer at Gloucestershire<\/a> Constabulary, and again, our hearts and prayers go out to him and all of his colleagues who know him very well.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is working with us to try to understand what exactly has happened within that property.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Fletcher added: \u201cWe have multiple witnesses who describe the anguish that he was going through, his inability to get in and save his children and save his wife.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is, as you can imagine, in a very distraught way.<\/p>\n \u201cSadly, lost his family at a time which is supposed to be a happy festive period.\u201d<\/p>\n Temporary chief constable Maggie Blyth said: \u201cThis is an unimaginable tragedy and my thoughts are with our colleague, along with all of those involved and impacted by what has happened.<\/p>\n \u201cAt a time when we are all acutely aware of family and the joys that they can bring, my heart breaks at the indescribable pain that they must be experiencing.\u201d<\/p>\n The Shearmans were registered as living at the property.<\/p>\n Ms Shearman ran a bespoke handbag manufacturer, Hide & Hammer, making fashion accessories from leather and canvas fabric.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Councillor Chloe Turner, detective superintendent Ian Fletcher and deputy chief fire officer Nathaniel Hooton (PA)<\/p>\n![\"Detective](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/526d395596a0fbe25e38e9e9b4ff925aY29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzY3MDk2NDU3-2.82910191.jpg\")
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