Householder escapes unhurt after tackling Saltney chip pan blaze

Jan 11 2010 by David Holmes, Chester Chronicle

FIREFIGHTERS were astonished a householder escaped uninjured after he tackled an intense chip pan blaze.

Cheshire Fire Service said the fire at the house in Howard Road, Saltney, was so severe the plaster had started to come away from the walls.

But the householder, in his 40s, had extinguished the blaze which was out by the time fire crews from Chester and Deeside arrived about 10pm on Friday (January 8).

The fire service advises householder not to put themselves in danger but to shut the door, go outside and dial 999.

It is understood the man, who was checked by paramedics, had left the chip pan unattended after going round to his mother’s house next door.

When he returned the fat had ignited causing a severe fire in the kitchen. The man used bowls of water to extinguish the blaze but this is highly dangerous as it can greatly exacerbate the fire.

The householder’s elderly mother who had gone into the smoke-filled property was also checked by paramedics having breathed in “a bit of smoke”.

There was smoke damage to the entire house which was uninhabitable. Firefighters fitted smoke alarms because there were no working smoke detectors in the fire damaged house or next door.