Supporters have rallied together to raise £125,000 for a police officer whose wife and two children tragically lost their lives in a house fire on Boxing Day.
Tom Shearman, a dedicated officer with the Gloucestershire police force, attempted to save his family when their home in Brimscombe, near Stroud, Gloucestershire, was engulfed in flames. Unfortunately, he was unable to enter the burning house.
In this devastating incident, his wife, Fionnghuala Shearman, affectionately known as Nu, perished alongside their daughter Eve, aged seven, and four-year-old son Ohner.
A GoFundMe campaign established to aid Mr. Shearman has successfully garnered over £125,000 in contributions.
Initially set at £110,000, the fundraising goal has been raised to £190,000 as donations continue to pour in.
Emergency services responded to the incident at a Cotswold stone cottage located on Brimscombe Hill around 3 a.m. on Boxing Day.
Detective Superintendent Ian Fletcher said the mother and father were woken by the fire and had attempted to reach their children in the rear bedroom.
‘They have been unable to get to the back bedroom due to the ferocity of the fire,’ he said.
Serving Gloucestershire police officer Tom Shearman with his wife his wife of around ten years, Fionnghuala Shearman, and their children Eve, aged seven, and four-year-old son Ohner. Tragically, Mrs Shearman and their two children died in a Boxing Day fire
Emergency services were called to a mid-terrace Cotswold stone cottage in Brimscombe, near Stroud in Gloucestershire, at about 3am on Boxing Day
‘The father has smashed his way out of the house through a bathroom window in order to try to access the children’s bedroom via the outside.
‘He has been unable to enter the property via that bedroom window.
‘He 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’s unable to get back into the upstairs bedrooms.
‘He has subsequently gone downstairs and tried to force entry via the front and the back door but has been unable to get back inside to the property.
‘It is at this point our colleagues from emergency services have attended and have started managing and dealing with that fire.’
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.
The fire destroyed the roof, the ceilings and stairs, as well as causing other significant internal damage.
Mr Fletcher described the anguish the officer is going through at being unable to rescue his wife and children.
Mr Shearman and Mrs Shearman. A Now, a gofundme set up for Mr Shearman has raised more than £125,000 in donations
‘We are not treating this as a suspicious incident at this time,’ Mr Fletcher said.
‘This would appear to be a tragic accident that’s occurred in the early hours of Boxing Day. The surviving member of this family is a serving police officer at Gloucestershire Constabulary and again our hearts and prayers go out to him and all of his colleagues who know him very well.
‘He is working with us to try to understand what exactly has happened within that property.’
He added: ‘We 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.
‘He is, as you can imagine, in a very distraught way.’
Temporary Chief Constable Maggie Blyth said: ‘This is an unimaginable tragedy and my thoughts are with our colleague, along with all of those involved and impacted by what has happened.
‘At 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.’
Mrs Shearman ran bespoke handbag manufacturer Hide & Hammer making fashion accessories from leather and canvas fabric.
A friend of the family told the Daily Mail that what happened was ‘absolutely shocking’.
‘We are all shellshocked to be honest with you.
‘We don’t know what happened (to cause the fire).’
