Mr Smith said he was "pleading" with people to examine their behaviour and asked for anyone who knows of somebody who is at risk, or dependant, to contact the fire service for a safety check.
Among other things, he should have taken Chekhov's oft-quoted advice if you show the audience a gun, somebody had better fire it sooner or later just as he should have had the courage to eschew the crowd-pleasing touch of sentimentality that ends the play.