AN inquest has been opened into the death of a part-time cleaner who died after a blaze at her sister's home, last Tuesday.

Maureen Collier, 37, mother of a young daughter, had been living temporarily at the house on Claremont Terrace, Nelson, which her sister rented, for about two months as she had no home, the hearing, at Burnley Magistrates' Court, was told.

Mrs Collier's mother Shirley 0'Callaghan, of Reedyford Road, Nelson, told the inquest her daugher was a smoker, used a lighter and was careful with cigarette ends.

She said last time she saw her daughter was on Sunday, August 12, when Mrs Collier went to her home for a couple of hours with her daughter.

She had seemed all right.

Mrs 0'Callaghan said she had been told about the fire and had been planning to go down to Claremont Terrace when police arrived and told her they had found her daughter's body.

East Lancs Coroner David Smith said the fire brigade had investigated the circumstances of the blaze and he was awaiting the results of that.

Samples from Mrs Collier's body had also been sent to Manchester Royal Infirmary for toxicology analysis and the results of that would take about six weeks.

He adjourned the hearing and said he would resume it when he got all the information together.