A LITTLE Sutton woman is too frightened to go home after an arson attack that nearly killed her.
Caroline Greenland, aged 50, of Chester Road, was targeted by arsonists who poured an accelerant through her letter box at 4am on October 4.
She said this week: “It is terrifying to think that somebody could do that. I could have died, and very nearly did.
“I could have lost everything, it was horrendous.”
But the arsonists woke Caroline, who was sleeping downstairs, and her neighbour was alerted by his dog that something was wrong.
Caroline, who is still suffering from the effects of the smoke, said: “I was only half awake at the time so didn’t realise what it was. It was only when I started choking on the smoke I realised what was happening.
“It was so thick and black I just couldn’t breathe or see. I was absolutely terrified.”
Caroline scrambled to the window and threw it open, screaming for help.
By this time the door was alight and the curtains next to it also went up .
She managed to make it to her back door and open the top half of the stable door before collapsing.
Her neighbour had also fallen asleep in his armchair and his dog started whining and woke him.
Caroline had left her keys in the door so her neighbour was able to reach through and unlock the door and drag her out.
She said: “I was just so lucky, if I hadn’t fallen asleep on the sofa, or my neighbour hadn’t woken up I would certainly be dead.”
“The hospital said if I had been in that house three minutes more I would have been dead.”
A passing taxi driver stopped and used his fire extinguisher to dampen the blaze before the fire crews arrived.
