A regional daily has won praise from the family of a man killed in a fire for helping to find his body.

Waqas Qureshi’s relatives have thanked Lancashire Telegraph journalists for helping to push for the authorities to investigate whether anyone had died in the blaze.

Mr Qureshi died in the fire at the Smart Autos building, in Blackburn, on Saturday 24 April last year, but his body was not found until four days later due to “conflicting information” about whether anyone had been inside.

At the time, the Newsquest-owned Telegraph had received reports from Pakistan that a man had not been seen since the fire, condradicting the official line in the UK, and pushed for the search of the building that ultimately led to the tragic discovery.

Mr Qureshi’s brother Umair told an inquest into his death: “It was very difficult for us as a family to get the message across.

“If it was not for the local news journalists then this may have taken a lot longer. No one was talking us seriously at the time and there was a lot of confusion.

“It was only through the pressure of local news journalists that the authorities started taking things more seriously. There was more pressure for someone in a position of responsibility to act.”

the inquest heard crews arrived within four minutes and the fire was already “very well-established”, with it being too dangerous for firefighters to enter the building until they had got the blaze under control.

A number of days later after the fire service received reports a person may be inside, sniffer dogs were sent in and Mr Qureshi’s body was discovered.

Coroner Richard Taylor recorded a verdict of accidental death following the inquest at Preston Coroner’s Court last month.

Richard Duggan, regional editor for Lancashire and Greater Manchester at Newsquest, told HTFP: “Waqas Qureshi’s death was a tragedy and his family should not have had to fight so hard to be taken seriously during a time of intense confusion and worry.

“The Lancashire Telegraph’s journalists pride themselves on delivering strong local news and being a voice for our readers in times of strife.

“It is essential that local newspapers put pressure on those in power to get to the truth, as the Lancashire Telegraph did in this terrible case.

“We were so pleased to hear that our work helped Mr Qureshi’s family and friends get the answers they so desperately needed – we just wish it hadn’t been necessary and we continue to keep them and Waqas in our thoughts.”

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service told the Telegraph it has “reviewed the processes in places and made amendments to ensure this will not happen again”.