AN ELDERLY man who died after a house fire in Essex was named by police yesterday .Gordon Lee, 85, was found in the dining room of his home in Sharpington Close, Chelmsford, on Thursday afternoon.

AN ELDERLY man who died after a house fire in Essex was named by police yesterday .

Gordon Lee, 85, was found in the dining room of his home in Sharpington Close, Chelmsford, on Thursday afternoon.

He was alone in the house at the time of the blaze. His wife returned home and was confronted by a wall of smoke when she opened the front door.

She and a neighbour went into the house and pulled Mr Lee out into the front garden.

Firefighters tried to revive him until paramedics arrived, but he could not be saved.

Fire investigation officers believe the fire started in the kitchen as a result of unattended cooking. Smoke spread throughout the house because all the doors were open.

A post mortem examination will be conducted next week.