A FATHER whose young daughter died after he fell asleep leaving a chip pan unattended has spoken of paying the " ultimate price" for his mistake.

Four-year-old Eden Lewis died as a result of smoke inhalation.

Despite the efforts of alert neighbours who spotted flames in the kitchen, Eden's father, Dale Lewis, could not be woken.

In a statement handed to reporters after an inquest in Lancaster on Friday, Mr Lewis said: "I made a mistake and have paid the ultimate price with losing Eden."

The inquest heard how Mr Lewis returned home from work at around 7pm on Monday, February 4, after a long day at work.

He drank 'four or five' glasses of vodka and coke while cooking his tea. His wife, Carol, left for her night shift as a nurse at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary shortly after her husband returned home, leaving Eden and her one-year-old brother, Alex, in bed.

Later in the evening, Mr Lewis turned on the gas hob to heat a chip pan.

He told the inquest: "I had the pan on low and got some chips from the freezer, then went back into the front room and fell asleep.

The next thing I remember was lying on the pavement outside and seeing my daughter being put into the ambulance."

A police investigation into the fire took place and Mr Lewis was interviewed under caution, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided that any attempt to prosecute would not be appropriate.

A subsequent investigation by the fire brigade discovered that the house had been fitted with a smoke alarm, but the battery had been disconnected.

Mr Lewis' neighbour, Frank Johnston, recalled looking out of his kitchen at around 11pm to see the chip pan catching fire next door.

He immediately went next door and began banging on the door - his wife joined him moments later.

Getting no response from inside, he returned home to call the fire brigade before returning to bang on the door.

He even drove his car up to the house and sounded his horn, before moving to make way for the fire service who arrived around five minutes later.

Firemen spoke of the thick, black smoke they encountered at the house.

Retained firefighter Philip Woodhouse was part of the second unit to arrive on the scene.

He told the inquest that he and colleague, Andy Charlesworth, entered the house using breathing apparatus.

Visibility was zero, he explained, but he was able to find Eden in one of the upstairs bedrooms.

She was taken from the scene to the RLI and, later, to the Pendlebury children's hospital, where she died in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Mrs Lewis was too ill to attend the inquest, but she provided a written statement.

She was first alerted to the fire at her home at 11pm and she waited for the ambulance to bring her family to the hospital.

Recording a verdict of death by misadventure, North Lancashire coroner, George Howson encouraged families to follow the fire brigade's advice, to install smoke alarms and keep them connected.

He also urged families who discover a chip pan fire to ensure everyone is out of the building and call the fire brigade.

"For whatever reason, this didn't happen in this case and, for that reason, we have this very sad fatality."

In his statement, Mr Lewis added: "As regards myself and Eden, we had a special relationship, we did everything together, like a normal dad would do with his daughter.

"Eden was every parent's dream child, so special to us in every way possible and made an impression on everyone she met and knew.

"Words are not enough to express how I feel, only that I know Eden was happy and know she was loved beyond compare."