By Liz Fowler

THE DAUGHTER of a Montrose man who died as a result of a fire at his home in Blackfriars Court in Western Road on Saturday spoke yesterday of the shock of being in the house and not realising his life was in danger.

Ian Robertson (53) was found by firefighters in an upstairs bedroom in the warden’s house at Blackfriars Court, a council sheltered housing complex where his wife Carole is tenancy support officer.

He was taken outside but attempts by the firemen and paramedics failed to revive him.

The tragedy unfolded moments after a visit by the couple’s only daughter Beverley with her two young sons, Kade (8) and Dylan (5), and daughter Kayla (2).

Emergency services were called to the house around 3pm when a smoke alarm was activated.

Said Beverley, “I had just left with the two younger ones, but had left Kade behind to meet a friend there. I must just have been round the corner when the alarm went off.”

She carried on to meet her partner Scott, then get ready for work at a video hire shop when she was called by police and told of the emergency.

She said, “I rushed back to Blackfriars and found the place full of all the emergency service vehicles.

“My first instinct was that Kade had been in an accident but when I looked up at the bedroom window I knew immediately it was my dad.”

Luckily, her mother had managed to escape the blaze with her grandson before the firefighters arrived.

“It looks like dad must have been smoking in bed,” said a devastated Beverley. “But the awful thing to think of is that we were downstairs when the room had been filling up with smoke.

“By the time the alarm went off it seems it was too late to do anything. Maybe if we had been alerted more quickly to what was happening we could have saved him. It’s a nightmare we’ll have to live with.

“My grandfather died in February and dad had been his full-time carer. Before that he worked offshore.

“The house is still sealed off and my mum is staying with me meantime but she is in no state yet to speak about what has happened.”

Around 20 firefighters tackled the blaze. Crews from Montrose and Brechin attended, plus a command support unit and a breathing apparatus support unit from Dundee.

Tayside Fire and Rescue station manager Ron Massie said, “The Montrose crews were first on the scene. There was a fire in the first-floor bedroom and they entered to find a male on the bedroom floor.

“They rescued him from the property. When the paramedics checked him over he was found to be dead.

“The fire itself was contained within the bedroom.

“It wasn’t a major blaze. Within the room there was a lot of black smoke and heat, not a lot of flames.”

With the blaze contained in the warden’s house, the 23 flats in the Blackfriars Court scheme occupied by elderly residents did not require to be evacuated.

However many remained in shock yesterday as the council drafted in extra support officers.

A council spokeswoman said, “Our thoughts and sympathy are with Mr Robertson’s family. Since this incident additional support has been available to tenants and will continue to be available on a 24-hour basis via tenancy support officers and the community alarm service.”

A police spokesman said, “There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr Robertson’s death and, as with all sudden deaths, a report has been submitted to the procurator fiscal.”