A FAMILY had a lucky escape after a fire in their home destroyed their newly fitted kitchen.
Firefighters from Wrexham and Johnstown were called to the property at Tan Y Clawdd, Johnstown, at 4.37pm on Sunday.
The residents, a woman aged 61 and her granddaughter aged 18, had been given smoke alarms as a present, but had not got around to fitting the devices.
Luckily, the granddaughter, who has not been named, smelled smoke from another room and raised the alarm. She was given a precautionary check-up at the scene.
Her grandmother later collapsed and was treated by paramedics for shock.
The fire, started by an electrical fault in the fridge, caught hold quickly and caused 95% fire damage to the kitchen and 100% smoke damage to other rooms in the house.
Andy Robb, fire safety enforcement officer for Wrexham, said: “The residents of this house were distraught that their newly fitted kitchen was destroyed in the fire – however, they were extremely lucky to have escaped relatively unharmed.
“The property did not have any working smoke alarms fitted – if the fire had broken out during the night, we could have been dealing with another two fire deaths here in North Wales.”
He added: “Smoke alarms give a vital early warning signal which allows people to escape safely and contact the fire and rescue service as soon as possible.
“The residents of this property had received smoke alarms as a gift, but had not got around to fitting them. We give out smoke alarms for free during our free home fire safety checks, available for all residents in North Wales.”
He said the fire appears to have been caused by a short circuit in the fridge.
North Wales Fire and Rescue Service offer free home fire safety checks. To register, call 0800 1691234, email cfs@nwales-fireservice.org.uk or visit www.nwales-fireservice.org.uk.
