Fire crews praise teen for raising alarm following early morning house blaze

A sixteen year-old boy banged on his neighbours door to raise the alarm, after fire broke out in their garage in Myrtle Green at around 4.30am. The boy, who was playing on his PlayStation heard banging, spotted the blaze and rushed across to wake his neighbours, ensuring the couple and their two children got out safely. Three fire engines were quickly on the scene and firefighters wearing breathing apparatus, used a main jet, hose reel jet, and a positive pressure ventilation fan to tackle the blaze. The fire is believed to have started accidentally in either a fridge freezer or a tumble dryer in the garage. Fire crews were at the property for around two and a half hours and will be revisiting the family home later today. They also spoke to neighbouring residents about the importance of having working smoke alarms in the home and making sure that there is lots of space around tumble dryers so they can draw in cold air. If fire breaks out in your home, please get out and find somewhere safe to wait nearby, phone 999 and always wait for the fire and rescue service to arrive. Please don’t attempt to go back into the building to rescue possessions or fight the blaze yourself. Leave this to firefighters who have the equipment and are trained to do this.