Caerphilly memorial for children and 'hero' killed in 1989 fire

The families believe the memorial means the three victims will never be forgotten

A memorial for two children who were killed in a flat fire 33 years ago, as well as the man who died trying to save them, has been unveiled.

Nine-month-old Jade Lewis, her brother Geraint, two, and "hero" Darren Smith, 20, from Lansbury Park, Caerphilly, died in December 1989.

The children's mum Tania Lewis said she hoped the memorial would be a place for people to come and remember.

Mr Smith's sister Deborah said she was "so proud" about the memorial.

Tania was 20 at the time and lived in one of the maisonette flats on Maxton Court with Jade - a "strong-willed mummy's girl" - and "chilled and cwtchy" Geraint.

Geraint Lewis, his sister Jade, and neighbour Darren Smith were all killed in a flat fire

She remembered putting clothes away as the children slept when the blaze began.

"I heard a bang and then my door was open and there was all smoke and stuff. You're not thinking straight - I was thinking 'I could get out and break their window and go in that way' but I couldn't, so I went the other way and then I held onto an aerial and I fell 20 foot."

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As she tried to escape, Tania called out for help and neighbour Brian Evans, along with Darren, who had been visiting a friend, bravely tried to enter the smoke and fire-filled flat.

Despite their efforts, neither could reach her children and Darren, an asthmatic, died on the landing.

Tania described them both as "heroes".

Tania Lewis and her baby son Geraint

She then had to wait on the floor in the cold for paramedics.

An ambulance strike meant the only one available had taken her children to hospital in Chepstow, 30 miles away, accompanied by her parents - but the children's burn injuries were too severe.

Deborah and Tania were proud to see the memorial

"They lived five and six days after, I don't know what else to say," Tania adds, her voice trailing off.  Talking about that night is still very difficult for Tania, now 53. She still has nightmares and wakes up feeling she has to get out of the house in panic.

In the months following her children's deaths, Tania left Caerphilly but felt able to return in 2013 and still lives there with her 21 year-old son Ieuan.

Deborah John, Darren's younger sister, said her brother, known as Smithy, was her "best friend".

On the night of the fire she was 17 and was driving home with her parents after being at a wedding.

They saw the flames and her mum said: "I hope my baby's not in there," referring to Darren.

The flats in which the three died were not demolished until 2000, 11 years after the tragedy

"Referring to how her mother reacted when she was told that Darren had died, she said her "howl" had "stayed with me always".

She said her brother could never have just stood and watched what was happening.

"He'd help anybody in any way. That night I just look at him and say 'what a brave man' how many other people would do that? I don't know if I could."

Councillor Elaine Forehead says for people on the estate, the fire is "tragic history but it's there and it's part of their lives"

An inquest into the three deaths heard the fire probably started from a discarded cigarette which set fire to a foam sofa, the type of which is now banned.

In the years that followed, the community came together to fight for flats to be demolished, staging protests at the council, and arguing the buildings were not safe due to their layout.

There were nine blocks on Lansbury Park. The last one, where Tania and the children lived, was finally demolished in 2000.

Caerphilly councillor Elaine Forehead is a similar age to Tania and Deborah and was also there that night, accompanying her father, who was a councillor at the time.

"It is part of the history of the area. A lot of changes came in after that fire... it shouldn't have taken three people to die to realise they weren't safe.

"It is something that marked every family. People cared, they cared then and they care now."

Deborah hopes the new memorial will make young people more aware of fire risks: "How many kids leave their chargers on at night when they go to bed? Things can happen"

Now, on the green space where the flats once stood, a memorial has been built and three trees planted to remember Jade, Geraint and Darren. Deborah said she was happy there was now something there "for the three of them" after a previous plaque commemorating her brother's action was on display in a GP's surgery.

For Elaine, the memorial marks an important moment for the community. "They needed to be remembered. Their lives made a massive change to this estate, people don't realise how these little children and Darren lost their lives to improve other people's lives."