EXACTLY how two firefighters came to die while tackling a tower block blaze in Southampton will be heard in public for the first time at an inquest takes place into their deaths due to begin today.

A jury will be sworn in to hear evidence about the night Red Watch colleagues Alan Bannon and James Shears lost their lives while fighting the fire which broke out on the ninth floor of Shirley Towers.

It was just over two years ago, on April 6, 2010, that the blaze tore through the home of Kirsty and Karl Hoffman, leading to dozens of residents being evacuated from their flats.

Firefighters from across Southampton and other parts of Hampshire were all at the scene, but within a matter of hours, Alan and Jim – known to friends as Bert and Britney – died.

Both had been overcome by the heat, a post-mortem examination revealed.

Alan, 38, from Southampton, left behind wife Charlotte and daughter Abigail, while Jim, 35, who lived in Poole, was married to Carla and had two sons, Ruben and Frankie.

As reported by the Daily Echo, nobody will face prosecution following several investigations into the deaths of the men, who served at St Mary’s station.

Hampshire police carried out an 18-month investigation which determined that there was no criminal activity and the case was not referred to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Earlier this month the Health and Safety Executive revealed they had completed their inquiry and would not be seeking to prosecute anyone either, although they have made a series of recommendations which are likely to be revealed during the inquest.

The hearing, at Southampton council chamber, is set to last four weeks.