A year ago, Upper Hutt mother Margaret Fordham (known as ‘Terri’) passed away after a suspicious fire in her Bridge Road home.
Police are still working to advance the investigation and find out what happened to Terri.
During the early hours of Thursday 12 August 2021, Terri was awoken by a fire in the downstairs entranceway of her home. She had been asleep upstairs with her dog Daisy and she opened a window and screamed to her neighbours for help. They tried to rescue her with a ladder but they couldn’t reach her so Terri threw Daisy out to the neighbours and sadly Terri succumbed to smoke inhalation.
Police engaged Fire and Emergency specialist investigators who alongside Police, conducted a thorough scene investigation after the fire. The cause of the fire that took Terri Fordham’s life is undetermined so Police are keeping an open mind as to how it started.
Two nights later in the early hours of Saturday 14 August, the neighbours were again awoken by a fire at Terri’s house. The second floor was fully engulfed and that fire destroyed the home. Someone has gone into the burnt-out property and deliberately set a second fire to the upper level which puts a new lens on the first fire which took Terri’s life.
During the scene examination, Police discovered some items which they believed were destroyed by the fire. Forensic experts have recovered these items to a point where they are forensically viable so investigators are determined to see where that evidence takes them.
Terri was a much-loved member of the community with an active social life who enjoyed her gardening and was in a choir. Terri’s family are absolutely devasted at not only the loss of her but also the beloved memories of her due to the destruction caused by the fires.
If you know anything that can help bring Terri’s whānau some answers, please call 0800 107 INFO.
