Two lodges mysteriously burnt to the ground within an hour of each other after their owners complained about the traveller-run holiday park site on BBC Panorama.
Mike Chesworth and Alison Porter-Garroch bravely spoke out on the documentary in March 2024 where they lamented the endless struggles of life at Wyre Country Park in Lancashire.
The pair claimed on the programme to have been ‘misled’ into buying the homes after being told they could live there all year round.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, the former lodgers also recalled a number of ‘health and safety issues’ on sight, such as sewage leaking from nearby manholes – only for a ‘local farmer’ to then pump it into the river.
Following several court cases involving the site’s owner, David Welch, the park issued Mr Chesworth with an eviction notice in July this year which stated he had 28 days to leave.
On day 28, the 61-year-old’s lodge tragically caught fire and burnt to the ground.
An hour later, another lodger in a separate location in the park, Ms Porter-Garroch, 53, who appeared alongside Mr Chesworth in the Panorama documentary noticed her property had also caught fire.
Fortunately, the pair were not inside at the time but they lost all their possessions as the lodges were reduced to ashes.
Mike Chesworth bravely spoke out on a documentary endless struggles of life at Wyre Country Park in Lancashire. Then his lodge, pictured, was then burned to the ground
Mr Chesworth had been living in the lodge with his wife. Pictured are some of the couple’s clothes that were completely ruined in the fire
The lodge belonging to Mr Chesworth is pictured. He had purchased it in 2020 for the sum of £180,000
Shocking photos show how the buildings have been decimated with bits of debris everywhere and scorched clothes serving as a reminder of the sense of home that has now been lost.
Police have been unable to determine the cause of the fire due to its severity leaving little forensic evidence.
A man wearing a hoodie was allegedly spotted wandering around the site on the day of the tragedy.
Meanwhile, Mr Welch was in Scotland.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mr Chesworth, whose lodge had been his and his wife’s primary residence, said: ‘My son lives in St. Helen’s and we were going down there on the motorway.
‘One of the residents said, “Mike, are you actually in? Your lodge is on fire”.
‘At first I thought he was joking and told him if he was it wasn’t funny – but then he said, “No, I’m telling you there’s smoke everywhere and your lodge is on fire”.
‘I was in a state of shock. We turned round and headed straight back. I got back and my lodge was ablaze; there were fire engines everywhere.
The BBC Panorama documentary had focused on lodgers’ claims they were falsely told by Wyre Country Park management that they had permission to live on site all year round.Mike Chesworth is pictured in the documentary as he grows increasingly emotional
Ms Porter-Garroch also explained her situation on the programme and was critical of the park’s management
In a statement at the time Mr Welch (pictured) denied misleading buyers and rejected ‘any allegations of intimidation or threats to “evict” holiday makers’, claiming he had received no formal complaints
‘I was like “what the hell is going on”.
‘There were also no working fire hydrants so they had to connect to hoses off the park.
‘It was devastating. Then all of a sudden a woman shouted “bloody hell, there’s another one on fire”.’
Mr Chesworth had bought his lodge in 2020 for £180,000.
The other lodge, belonging to Ms Porter-Garroch, a single occupant, was said to have gone up in flames within an hour of Mr Chesworth’s.
Ms Porter-Garroch, who purchased her lodge in 2018 for £98,000, told the Daily Mail: ‘On the day of the fire I was filling my fridge up. My small dog got attacked last year so I always look out of the door to see if there are any other dogs around.
‘I looked out and saw black smoke come in from by the river so I ran down – I realised it was Mike’s lodge.
‘I dialled 999 and let Mike know and was down there for about 40 minutes.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mr Chesworth, whose lodge had been his primary residence, said I got back and my lodge was ablaze, there were fire engines everywhere’
‘It was devastating. Then all of a sudden a woman shouted “bloody hell, there’s another one on fire”‘, he said
Fortunately, the pair were not inside at the time but they lost all their possessions as the lodges were reduced to charcoal, charred furniture and ashes
‘Then I realised I hadn’t walked my dogs and stopped to talk to a neighbour. The neighbour told me, “there’s smoke coming out the back of your lodge”.
‘I let the leads go on my dogs and ran over to my lodge.
‘It was just black. I went to go and get my dad and mum’s ashes, which were in the living room, while the bathroom was just on fire.
‘All I could see was black smoke. It was unbelievable. I’ve lost a lot of precious items.’
Ms Porter-Garroch said she would never return to the park – ‘not after what they’ve put my life through’.
Several issues are said to have arisen at the park from March 2023 onwards after Mr Welch was ordered to pay legal costs over a dispute with a lodger.
Following the court case, the site owner told residents he was no longer managing the park and they would need to transfer their money for bills to a new company called Exclusive Resorts.
But it soon emerged the director of the new company was Mr Welch himself.
Mr Chetsworth has insisted he experienced a general atmosphere of ‘intimidation’ at the park
Over the next two years, the businessman was in and out of court battling his customers as they were reluctant to give money to a company that ‘lacked legitimacy’ and unsure of the terms of the new contract they were being presented with.
It culminated in Mr Welch issuing Mr Chesworth with the eviction notice in July this year.
The BBC Panorama documentary had focused on lodgers’ claims they were falsely told by Wyre Country Park management that they had permission to live on site all year round.
In a statement at the time Mr Welch denied misleading buyers and rejected ‘any allegations of intimidation or threats to “evict” holiday makers’, claiming he had received no formal complaints.
This is despite Mr Chesworth insisting he had experienced a general atmosphere of ‘intimidation’ at the park.
He recalled one incident which allegedly involved all of Mr Welch’s ‘mates’ coming down and parking caravans in front of his house – ‘they brought their dogs along and told me “they’ll s*** all over your property and have kids”‘, he said.
The former lodger further claimed that, amidst the legal threats from Exclusive Resorts, Mr Welch had failed to spend £30,000 Mr Chesworth had transferred to him for the purpose of decking his property.
Residents at the park also said there had been ongoing issues stretching back years including ‘health and safety being terrible’.
A ‘local farmer’ at the site appeared to pump overflowing sewage into the river next to Mr Chesworth’s lodge
Mr Chesworth recalled one incident involving a manhole ‘in front of’ his door. He said: ‘It wasn’t covered so there was just a wooden palette on top’
Mr Chesworth recalled one incident involving a manhole ‘in front of’ his door.
He said: ‘It wasn’t covered so there was just a wooden palette on top.
‘And we were probably about 100 feet from a septic tank. When the tank broke down, everything broke out of that cover.
‘There was literally raw sewage seeping out all in front of my lodge.
‘And then, the person who was sent down to deal with it – I think it was a local farmer – he just pumped the sewage out into the river.’
Mr Chesworth was able to film the spectacle as well as the ‘open sewer’ itself.
In one video he says: ‘This is a sewer – an open sewer – that is covered by a piece of wood.
‘This is literally about 12ft from my front door, and as you can see it is rising to the top because the sewage system on this site is not working properly again.
Greg Wilson, CEO of European Consumer Claims (ECC), which helps claimants taking legal action against alleged holiday park malfeasance, told the Daily Mail: ‘The origins of these two fires which destroyed Alison and Mike’s lodges may never be known, and we are not suggesting any foul play’
‘It’s risen about two feet overnight and is set to spill, and all the sewage will start to spill while everybody’s lodges and everything else is backing up.
‘Within the next couple of days this is going to spill all over the grass in front of my home where I will have yet again spillages of raw sewage because the land owner is not dealing with things correctly.’
In another video, a ‘local farmer’ called upon to deal with the sewage spillage can be seen pumping it out into the river.
A spokesman for Mr Welch told the Daily Mail he tries ‘very hard to run a beautiful park’.
The spokesman said: ‘There have been a number of protracted legal cases which have involved these two former lodge owners of the park, who have themselves caused problems on the park and refused to pay fees that were due.
‘The court cases were settled by agreement and it is disappointing that an attempt now seems to be made to try and go behind those agreements and seek to use the media as a way of doing that.
‘Wyre Park is run by Exclusive Resorts Limited, of which Mr Welch is not a director. It is a holiday park that is not intended to be used as a residential site and this is made clear in the paperwork and signage for the site.
‘We try very hard to run a beautiful park and believe that the majority of lodge owners are happy with what we provide.’
Mr Welch, born February 1983, is currently listed as a director of Exclusive Resorts Ltd on Companies House.
He was appointed on February 22, last year.
Ms Porter-Garroch claimed of Mr Welch: ‘He’s a born-again Christian. He goes to Church and he’s religious on God but he lies.
‘One Christmas we went without gas for eight days – it was absolutely freezing.
‘He said there was something wrong with the main gas but we found out it just hadn’t been filled – we’d gone without heating for eight days.
‘I did say to him at one point, “David, you’ve got to stop lying”.’
Greg Wilson, CEO of European Consumer Claims (ECC), which helps claimants taking legal action against alleged holiday park malfeasance, told the Daily Mail: ‘The origins of these two fires which destroyed Alison and Mike’s lodges may never be known, and we are not suggesting any foul play.
‘This is even more bad fortune for two people who have suffered a great deal already.
‘Mike and Alison were brave enough to speak out publicly about their experiences with this park and their personnel.
‘As more people come forward to reveal what has happened to them, bad actors in this business will have less opportunity to ruin lives of other people looking to buy park homes.
‘Anyone who has had a negative experience with the purchase of a lodge or static caravan should certainly seek expert advice. These are life-changing amounts of money, and often something can be done to recoup the losses.’
The BBC has been contacted for comment.
