A FILIPINO farm worker died attempting to warm himself with a “makeshift fire” after his employer told him his struggles to survive were “not his problem”, an inquest has heard.
George Michael Monte De Ramos Castrudes (37) suffered significant hypoxic brain damage resulting from a fire started in work lodgings on the grounds of La Valette Nurseries in Grouville.
The seasonal agency worker was found lying unconscious on Sunday 19 January last year in a wooden cabin “engulfed in flames”, the inquest was told.
On the first day of an inquest which is expected to last four days, it was heard that Mr Castrudes filled the drum of a washing machine with “smokeless” wood to create an “improvised fire-pit” in the middle of his kitchen.
Fire officers discovered the 37-year-old collapsed with his head between the washing machine and the tumble dryer.
It was heard that the fire was started “at a time when temperatures had dropped particularly low outside”, to a reported 0.3°C.
Mr Castrudes – referred to as “George” throughout the inquest – was seen during an online worship service with his family the night before the fire, during which he spoke to his siblings about how cold he felt.
He told his sister he did not like to use the heater in order to save money on electricity costs, and that attempts to resolve alleged “delays” in salary payments from his employers were unsuccessful.
On Thursday 23 January, he died at the Hospital from “significant hypoxic brain damage” due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
David, Nigel and Paul Blake, directors of the La Valette Nurseries, were present at yesterday’s hearing alongside a representative for the Jersey Farmers’ Union.
Also in the room were Mr Castrudes’ neighbours and two fire and rescue officers.
Joining the hearing via remote link were George’s sister Grace, partner Mitchelle, and Agnes Tan on behalf of Filipino recruitment agency Diamond-H.
Deputy Viscount Matt Berry said the hearing was not designed to “apportion blame” but to determine “how George came about his death”.
Issues determined to fall “within the scope” of the inquest include medical cause of death, the cause of fire, condition of accommodation and the contribution of financial or immigration-related circumstances.
Advocate George Pearce, representing the Nurseries, previously submitted that the inquest be “limited to the means or mechanism” by which George died.
But Mr Berry said indications that the fire originated either from “the condition of accommodation” or Mr Castrudes’ “financial position” meant the original scope would be proceeded with.
He also referred to evidence that the fire alarm at Mr Castrudes’ lodgings was “not within working order”.
“In these circumstances, I am satisfied it is proportionate for the inquest to consider whether the condition of George’s accommodation or financial position may have contributed more than minimally, negligibly or trivially to the death.
“It is [also] proportionate to consider whether his immigration status was contributory, in particular how it might have affected his ability to address any concerns with his accommodation,” he added.
A case summary read out by Mr Berry described Mr Castrudes as a “hardworking, family-centred man” who arrived in Jersey for his fourth consecutive nine-month work season in July 2024.
A family statement written by his sister Grace added that Mr Castrudes came to the Island “dreaming of a brighter future for his children”.
Raised in a Christian family, he moved to Jersey via the Filipino-based Diamond-H recruitment agency in search of a salary which could support his three young daughters back home.
Grace said her brother – a “humble man” with a “kind-hearted attitude” – had told her he had encountered problems receiving his wages on time.
“Delay of his salary has had a huge effect on him and his family. His salary is supposed to have been given every Thursday, but employer Nigel Blake gives his salary every Tuesday the following week,” she said.
“George told us he asked Mr Nigel Blake about delayed salary because he needs to buy food – he knew at that time his youngest daughter was sick. Mr Nigel Blake just replied to him: ‘I don’t care.’”
The inquest heard that, leading up to the fire on Sunday 19 January, Mr Castrudes was forced into knocking on his neighbours’ front door to beg for food and money.
One of the neighbours, who lived in a house rented from the Blake family on the nursery grounds, described George in a written statement as a “very smiley, cheerful man” who she had known as “one of the workers on the farm” for three-to-four years.
But on the day in question she heard a “tentative buzz” at her door followed by a “second louder buzz”.
She said: “When I opened the door, I saw George stood there, initially very apologetic for disturbing me. He asked me if he could have some money. He said: ‘I need money, I have no food.’
“I was taken aback by this – it was the first time George had ever mentioned that, or that he was struggling. Initially I said that ‘you need to talk to Nigel’. He responded that he had, but that Nigel said it was ‘not his problem’.”
The neighbour said Mr Castrudes “appeared very grateful” when she gave him a £10 note and a plastic tub of frozen green soup.
“I was taken aback thinking about how much it would have taken George to ask for help,” she stated.
Giving evidence at the inquest, she told Mr Berry that she “didn’t hear a fire alarm” on the night in question as she watched smoke surround the accommodation.
In a statement written by firefighter Jonny Burch, the inquest heard that Mr Castrudes’ was discovered “lying unconscious” near a hole in his kitchen floor created by a burning steel drum.
Fire Crew Commander Oliver Gleave described discovering a hole melted into the flooring during an examination of the property on Monday 19 January.
“The washing machine drum aligned exactly with the size of the hole created by Mr Castrudes,” Mr Gleave said.
A bag of charcoal was found outside on the decking area, alongside a half-empty bag of Homefire e-coal, advertised as being “smokeless fire in a bag”, with “80% less smoke and 33% less CO2”, he continued.
He concluded that a cigarette lighter was used to ignite the fire “as a source of heating in the property at a time when temperatures had dropped particularly low outside, to 0.3°C”.
A “working hypothesis”, he noted, is that Mr Castrudes was “overcome by combustion” from the fire, causing the fire-pit “to be knocked over”, leading to the ignition of a portion of the flooring material.
The fire alarm, he added, was tested, but failed to “actuate”.
Ryan Hall, Station Commander at Jersey Fire and Rescue, explained that legislation requiring inspection certificates did not cover Mr Castrudes’ accommodation.
“It was not a property that requires a fire certificate under the Fire Precautions Jersey Law,” he said.
He added that although tenants are required to have in place a working smoke alarm at the beginning of a tenancy it would be the “responsibility of the tenants [to] test smoke alarms”.
The inquest continues today.
