The death of a Bradford teenager engulfed in flames after igniting a highly flammable liquid could have been avoided if the chemicals had been properly locked up, an inquest heard.

Daniel Tomlinson, 14, died from severe burns after setting fire to liquid in a canister he found on an industrial estate on August 11, last year.

Assistant deputy Bradford coroner James Turnbull yesterday condemned the security on the Eurocam technology estate off Chase Way, West Bowling, as "totally inadequate" after Daniel and his friends were able to get hold of the canister.

A Healthy and Safety Executive investigation into the tragedy is still going on.

The inquest heard that Daniel cut the container using broken glass, poured liquid on the floor and set fire to it using a lighter. He walked away from the blaze but was still holding the leaking canister.

Fire investigator Brian McKeating told the inquest the chemical - toluene - quickly turned into a flammable vapour which followed in Daniel's footsteps and engulfed him in flames.

The inquest was told that eyewitness Safraz Khan saw a flame from his house and ran to stop people starting a fire on the industrial estate.

But when he got there he saw Daniel screaming for help with the top half of his body covered in flames.

The inquest heard Daniel ran and fell onto nearby grass to attempt to put out the flames. Ambulance crews took him to him to Bradford Royal Infirmary and he was then transferred to Sheffield Children's Hospital. However Daniel had suffered burns to more than 80 per cent of his skin and died from his injuries six days later.

Daniel had been playing on the industrial estate with his ten-year-old brother Simon and friend Saleem Raja, 13 when the accident happened.

Sgt Frances Hill of Bradford Police told the inquest it was not known whether the boys had broken into a garage containing the chemical or had found it on the industrial estate.

A unit containing the bottles had three large stones on the bottom of a locked garage door but both Mr Turnbull and HSE officer David Powell said this was inadequate as the door could easily be forced.

Mr Turnbull said: "The security in this case has been totally inadequate. I would ask any prosecuting authority to consider very carefully what I say because the law states that you must not allow any dangerous situation to occur on your property but you must also take into account the possibility that inquisitive youngsters may seek to obtain access."

"The security has been inadequate; the canister came from that garage and it is this that has led indirectly to this tragedy."

HSE officer Mr Powell said after the hearing he was still considering whether to mount a prosecution against the garage's owners, Chase Advanced Technologies, which has now gone into receivership.

The teenager's family welcomed the coroner's comments and paid tribute to Daniel. His mother Allison of Henley Grove, West Bowling said she was still in shock from the tragedy. She said: "We didn't realise just how popular Daniel was until his school, Bradford Cathedral College, held a remembrance day for him which was absolutely wonderful even though I found it hard to get through."

Daniel's grandmother Maureen Hall, of Bierley, said: "He was wonderful, marvellous; he had a great sense of humour; he was the greatest kid alive and he was ours.

"He and Simon were always fighting but just you try to separate them - you couldn't. They did everything together."