London Fire Brigade has issued a candle safety warning after a family-of-five, including three young children, were rescued from a house fire in Croydon during the early hours of Sunday morning.
Neighbours of the family in Brading Road were alerted to the blaze and called 999 after they heard knocking on their wall.
The family next door had taken refuge in an upstairs bedroom after being tapped by heat and smoke from the fire which had started downstairs in their terraced house. They were given fire survival guidance by 999 Control officers until fire crews arrived. Firefighters then used a ladder to rescue the man, woman and their three young children from the first floor window of their house. All five were taken to hospital as a precaution.
Watch manager Michael Barratt from Norbury fire station who was at the scene warned people to take care if they were using candles. He said: "Many people have candles in their homes but if they are not used safely they can be a huge fire risk. In this case we believe the fire started after a tea-light candle was left unattended and ignited items on the wall shelf it was standing on. The debris fell onto a sofa below which also caught fire. Luckily there were no serious injuries but this fire sends a clear message that you should never leave candles unattended and should always make sure that you keep them on a heat resistant surface and away from curtains, furniture or anything else that can catch fire.
"There was no working smoke alarm in the house either. It is vital that you have one on every level of your home. They can buy you vital seconds to escape if you have a fire."
The brigade was called at 0214 and the fire, which damaged part of the property's ground floor, was under control by 0247. Two fire engines and around ten firefighters from Norbury fire station attended the incident.
Neighbours of the family in Brading Road were alerted to the blaze and called 999 after they heard knocking on their wall.
The family next door had taken refuge in an upstairs bedroom after being tapped by heat and smoke from the fire which had started downstairs in their terraced house. They were given fire survival guidance by 999 Control officers until fire crews arrived. Firefighters then used a ladder to rescue the man, woman and their three young children from the first floor window of their house. All five were taken to hospital as a precaution.
Watch manager Michael Barratt from Norbury fire station who was at the scene warned people to take care if they were using candles. He said: "Many people have candles in their homes but if they are not used safely they can be a huge fire risk. In this case we believe the fire started after a tea-light candle was left unattended and ignited items on the wall shelf it was standing on. The debris fell onto a sofa below which also caught fire. Luckily there were no serious injuries but this fire sends a clear message that you should never leave candles unattended and should always make sure that you keep them on a heat resistant surface and away from curtains, furniture or anything else that can catch fire.
"There was no working smoke alarm in the house either. It is vital that you have one on every level of your home. They can buy you vital seconds to escape if you have a fire."
The brigade was called at 0214 and the fire, which damaged part of the property's ground floor, was under control by 0247. Two fire engines and around ten firefighters from Norbury fire station attended the incident.