22699

A call was received by Fire Control from an alarm monitoring care line company to say that they had received a signal showing that an automatic fire alarm was activated in a residential property that they monitor. 1 fire engine from Wellington was sent straight away. On arrival the firefighters inspected the outside of the property and could see some smoke through the kitchen window. The looked into the letterbox and were faced with a strong smell of burning. The occupier had not been seen recently by his neighbor’s so the incident quickly escalated from an Automatic Fire Alarm to a Persons Reported Property Fire, this meant 2 additional Fire Engines and also an Officer to attend. When entering the property in Breathing Apparatus the firefighters were faced with an elderly man collapsed in the hallway. They quickly rescued him from the property where he was then seen to by an awaiting ambulance and transferred to the hospital. The smoke was coming from the kitchen and had filled the whole house. Firefighters found some unattended cooking that had been left under the grill. The property was ventilated using a positive pressure ventilation Fan. Although no flames were present, the effects of smoke can be just as harmful. Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service advise all households to have a working smoke detectors and to test them regularly. Additionally, good practice such as not leaving any cooking unattended can reduce the chances of fires occurring in the home.