'Heart of gold' - more tributes as Bicester fire inquiry continues

Further tributes have been paid to the three victims of a fire at an Oxfordshire business park as investigations into the cause continue.

Firefighters Jennie Logan, 30, and Martyn Sadler, 38, along with father-of-two Dave Chester, 57, were killed in the blaze that engulfed the Bicester Motion site on Thursday evening.

An employee of Mr Chester described him as "a lovely bloke", while friends of Ms Logan said she had "a heart of gold".

Lorraine Sandford, a friend via the Staffordshire bull terrier community, said Ms Logan's dog Mouse "was her pride and joy".

Danny Cooper, who lives near Birmingham, said he befriended Ms Logan about six years ago when they met at a dog show.

"She was a very good handler, she used to do dog walking for other people and volunteered at a rescue," he said.

"Whatever she wanted to do, she put her heart and soul in it."

Mr Cooper, who said Ms Logan appeared at Crufts with Mouse, revealed several dog shows across the country paid tribute to her over the weekend.

"Everyone stopped for a few minutes to show respect to Jen... [She] had a heart of gold. She was a very loved girl."

Ms Sandford said a minute's silence was also held at a show in Scotland.

"Every breed club, including ourselves, will be doing the same for Jen at each of our shows," she said.

Josh Bird, who used to work for Mr Chester, described him as "a lovely bloke" and "down to earth".

"[He was] always there to help you, [I] can't believe it," he said.

"It was just pretty crazy that it happened so fast and so soon and in such a small town."

Bicester Rugby Football Union Club has reached its target of £10,000 for the Fire Fighters charity which offers specialist lifelong health and wellbeing support for the UK fire and rescue community.

Mr Sadler had been involved with the club for more than 20 years, while Ms Logan joined Bicester Vixens in November 2021.

Paul Jaggers, the club's chair, said he was "absolutely astounded" and "overwhelmed and amazed by the generosity of everyone".

He said: "When we set the fund up we were aiming for £500 to £1,000. The traction that it's gained in the last 48 hours has been incredible."

He added: "We've had donations coming in from all over the country, even all over the world – we've had a US dollar donation."

He described the fundraiser as an "initial start".

"The intention was always to run some events later in the year to remember Jennie and Martyn, and raise money alongside those, so hopefully this is just the beginning," he added.

Bicester West councillor Dan Hallett said: "It is such a tragic accident and my heart goes out to everybody.

"I'm so glad that the whole town has come out in sympathy and support for the families and the community."

Teresa Wright's daughter, who was a firefighter at Oxford before she moved to Hampshire, she said she felt the need to pay her respects as "it's the only thing we can do".

"We brought flowers and signed the book, it's all we can do to show our support," she added.

Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe, from Thames Valley Police, has warned officers faced "a complex investigation which may take some time".

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