Vape sparks fatal prison fire: Missed chances exposed

A woman with severe mental illness, Clare Dupree, died in HMP Eastwood Park in December 2022 after starting a fire in her cell with a vape. An inquest found that a lack of automatic fire detection delayed the discovery of the blaze, which led to her death from smoke inhalation. Jurors concluded that "missed opportunities" could have prevented the tragedy. Dupree, originally from Cardiff, had a history of mental health issues compounded by personal trauma, including surgery for a cancerous cyst and a rape. Her family described her as a kind and outgoing person, deeply affected by these events, leading to drug use and periods of severe mental illness. She was incarcerated for the first time in summer 2022 following an incident where she threatened a supermarket security guard. Her mental health concerns were noted towards the end of her sentence, but a referral to psychiatric care was declined, and she was released into the community. Experts testified that a proper treatment of her mental illness, potentially bipolar disorder instead of an incorrect personality disorder diagnosis, could have reduced her risk-taking behaviours and possibly prevented her incarceration. The inquest heard that despite recommendations in 2015, automatic fire detectors had not been installed at HMP Eastwood Park. The coroner plans to submit a report to the Ministry of Justice highlighting concerns about fire safety in prisons.