Mother creates petition for a new law following inquest results of Newark toddler Louisiana-Brooke's death in Ingoldmells caravan fire

A heartbroken mother has launched a petition to improve caravan safety after losing her two-year-old daughter to a fire while on a family holiday.

Louisiana Brooke Dolan died at Sealands Caravan Park, Ingoldmells, in August 2021 when a fire broke out in a boiler cupboard and quickly spread, destroying 90% of the caravan.

A verdict of accidental death was delivered at an inquest into her death, which was told, despite extensive inquiries, it could not be determined what caused the fire.

The mum, Natasha Broadley, who believes the fire was started by a faulty boiler, is now determined to make sure others don’t go through the same agony by improving caravan safety.

She wants the law changed to make health and safety checks and gas certificates mandatory for caravans and has launched a petition that has already attracted around 2,000 names. It can be signed at https://shorturl.at/rEY18

She said: “I’m just so angry with it because obviously it all points to the boiler.

“There were no smoke alarms or a gas certificate and that’s what I’m fighting for. It is a law for a house but not a law for a caravan. It’s exactly like a home but on wheels.

“I just want to protect others. My daughter died for nothing and now I am going to live with that for the rest of my life.”

During the holiday, the family didn’t have hot water for three days and kept complaining to the caravan park owner. Three days after the complaint, a relative of the owner went to check on the boiler and lit it.

Soon after, the fire broke out.

Natasha said: “It took seven minutes for that chalet to burn down and that was with me in the shower. What haunts me the most is that you die for your kids but she died for me.

“That will live with me for the rest of my life – to make that choice to save the others and leave her behind when I couldn’t find her.”

Natasha created the petition with the intention of creating a law that makes it mandatory for caravan parks to have smoke alarms and boiler certifications, or face prosecution. She is hoping for the support of Newark MP Robert Jenrick.

She said: “I can’t believe there is not a law in a caravan park. You take yourself on a holiday and if anything happens there’s nothing you could do. And this is what I am doing now because there was nothing I could do, nothing you could do or that they could do and I want to make that change – to protect everyone, and then I can say that she is gone to protect these people, at least I will be able to say that.”

Louisiana was described by her mother as a loving and perfect girl, always with a smile on her face.

The family was living in Clipstone at the time but moved back to Newark after the two-year-old's death, moving in on what would have been Louisiana’s third birthday.

“I wanted to be back here, be closer to her, she is only across the road now,” said Natasha.

“I know she’s still with me, I can feel her sometimes.”