Electric fault blamed for house fire death of MLA Alex Easton's parents Alec and Ann as funeral draws near

By Adam Kula
Published 27th Jan 2023, 11:45 BST
Updated 27th Jan 2023, 14:08 BST
The home of Mr Easton's parents, where they had lived for decades (picture from Google Maps, before the fire)The home of Mr Easton's parents, where they had lived for decades (picture from Google Maps, before the fire)
The home of Mr Easton's parents, where they had lived for decades (picture from Google Maps, before the fire)
Alex Easton has reportedly blamed the house fire which claimed the lives of his two elderly parents on an electrical fault.

Ann and Alec Easton are set to be laid to rest tomorrow (Saturday) following the blaze at their home in Bangor on Monday.

A funeral notice for them describes the pair as “dearly loved parents of Christopher, Lorraine, and Alex, also much loved and loving parents-in-law, grandparents, and great grandparents”.

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The service of thanksgiving for their lives will take place in Bangor Abbey at 11am, with interment afterwards in St Michaels Parish Churchyard, Sixmilecross.

It ends with a Biblical quote: “Jesus said I am the resurrection and the Life” – John 11:25

In an interview with the local paper the Co Down Spectator, Mr Easton has been quoted as saying he was only five minutes away when the alarm was raised at 8.45am on Monday, when carers arriving at the house discovered a blaze creating dense, heavy smoke.

“We think they had been asleep and didn’t know much about it,” he was quoted telling the paper.

“But it was definitely an electrical fault...

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“They had taken both of them outside to work on them and I kept getting conflicting reports that they had a pulse and it would get my hopes up...

“I had seen my dad the day before. The last conversation I had with him was about a packet of biscuits for my mum, as I did the shopping for them every week.”

Alex was a retired South African engineer, who had lost both his legs to diabetes.

Ann had suffered a “mini-stroke”, and was frail and with limited mobility.

Both were in their 80s.

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