Two die in working men's club fire after ‘pub-goer flicked his lighter next to heater’

Philip Antony Townsend, 70, and John James McCartney, 60, both died from smoke inhalation after they were unable to escape from the Gordon Working Men's Club in Morecambe View 5 Images Moemnts before the club went up in flames

Panicked punters at a working men's club found themselves trapped inside when a devastating blaze erupted after a gas canister was set alight by a regular, an inquest has been told.

Philip Antony Townsend, 70, and John James McCartney, 60, both perished from smoke inhalation after becoming unable to flee the Gordon Working Men's Club in Morecambe on the afternoon of October 9, 2019.

The venue, situated on Springfield Street, occupied a building belonging to Gillnell - a London-based property investment firm run by Blake and Petronella Weltman, which also