SHOCKED friends have paid glowing tributes to popular village hall volunteer Phil Ouseley, who has died in a fire in Norton Fitzwarren.

Mr Ouseley, 71, died after his garage alongside his home in Rectory Road went up in smoke yesterday afternoon (Monday).

He was highly regarded in the village hall, where he dedicated many hours in recent years.


READ MORE: Popular villager killed in garage fire


Hall chairman Don Wyatt said: "He helped a great deal with maintenance in the building.

"If I needed any help, he was always available. He helped everybody.

"We opened the coffee shop two years ago and he was involved from the beginning.

"I'd ring him up any time at home and he'd come up and move a shed or whatever."

Mr Ouseley, who retired from his job with the West Somerset Railway several years ago, nursed his sick partner, Carol, for a number of years until her death two years ago.

He attended a car boot sale in Cheddar every Sunday morning and often brought back items for the village hall, including a wooden dragon, which has pride of place in the entrance to the coffee shop.

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Mr Wyatt said: "Phil's death has come as a dreadful shock for everyone.

"I drove into Rectory Road at the time of the fire, but there was so much smoke you couldn't get up the lane, it was so dark.

"I spent two and a half hours directing traffic until the emergency services turned up without realising it was Phil."

His wife, committee member Nita Wyatt, said: "Phil was a really nice guy. He's irreplaceable. He'll be sorely missed."

Coffee shop manager Tricia Leonard said: "He was a charming gentleman and would do anything for anyone. He'd help with everything."

An Avon and Somerset Police spokesman said: “We were called just before 2.20pm yesterday to assist fire crews with traffic management while they dealt with a fire at a property on Rectory Road, Norton Fitzwarren.

“Fire crews sadly found the body of a man in his 70s inside the property after the fire was extinguished.

“The man’s death is not suspicious and officers will now prepare a report for the coroner.”

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