Cooking fire destroys home in Harlow

Firefighters were called to a property in Harlow this afternoon, when a pan caught fire and spread quickly through the house.

Crews were called to Canons Brook in Harlow at 1:44pm after an occupant was unsuccessful in extinguishing a fire in his kitchen.

On arrival, firefighters confirmed a fire, which started in the kitchen, had spread through the both floors of the property. They also confirmed the house was heavily smoke-logged.

Crews worked quickly to extinguish the fire by 2:20pm, then ventilated the property and the adjoining properties which had also been affected by smoke. A man in his fifties suffered from burns and smoke inhalation was taken to hospital.

The property suffered significant damage as a result of the fire and is now unfortunately uninhabitable.

Watch Manager Danes at Harlow Fire Station said: “I’d like to praise the gentleman for recognising that the fire was beyond being extinguished safely. He did exactly what we’d want people to do in this situation - he got out, stayed out and called 999.

“A smoke alarm will alert you to the first sign of fire in your home. These kinds of incidents really highlight how important it is to have working smoke alarms on every level of your property. Without one, this incident could have had a very different outcome.”

Do you have working smoke alarms in your home?

Smoke alarms save lives. They can alert your family as well as your neighbours and passers-by to a fire in your home if you're not home.

We recommend you have at least one working smoke alarm on every level of your home and that you test them at least once a month.

If you or someone you know doesn’t have working smoke alarms, please get in touch. Visit essex-fire.gov.uk/book or call 0300 303 0088.

Could you be an on-call firefighter?

Some of the firefighters who attended this incident are on-call firefighters, who live or work within 5 minutes of an on-call fire station and are paid to attend incidents in their community.

If you live or work within 5 minutes of an on-call fire station, you could be an on-call firefighter.

Find out more about the role at essex-fire.gov.uk/on-call