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A County Durham couple died after their campervan burst into flames while they slept on a French campsite, an inquest heard.
David and Pamela Brack, both 81 from Chester-le-Street, died in the early hours of September 5 after the blaze at the Huttopia Gorges du Verdon campsite in Castellane, in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence.
Their son, who was parked nearby, tried to rescue the couple, according to French media reports.
An inquest was opened at Miners Hall in Durham on Monday (October 12).
Coroner's officer Emily Bourne told the short hearing: “I understand the circumstances to be that Mrs Pamela Brack was on holiday in France with her husband Mr David Brack, when a fire broke out in their campervan in the early hours of September 5.”
A post-mortem examination was carried out by Dr Sam Hoggard at Newcastle RVI mortuary and gave the provisional cause of death as the effects of fire.
David, who worked as an electrical engineer and Pamela, who worked as a hairdresser before their retirement, were identified by dental records.
The inquest was adjourned by Senior Coroner for Durham and Darlington Jeremy Chipperfield until July 20, 2027.
Following their deaths, an investigation into the fire was launched and the cause was identified as the van’s heater.
Antoine Pesme, Public Prosecutor of the Digne-les-Bains region, told French newspaper La Provence: “The causes have been identified by firefighters and investigators. The van's heater caught fire.
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"This fire is therefore purely accidental, and the investigation ends there.”
The Foreign Office offered its condolences to the family.
A spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British couple who died in France and are in contact with the local authorities.”