Neighbours praised for acting quickly when hearing smoke alarms

Firefighters are praising neighbours who alerted us to a kitchen fire when they heard smoke alarms going off in Newport this afternoon.

Crews from Newport and Saffron Walden were called to a Frambury Lane in Newport just after midday.

On arrival, crews reported a pan left on the hob had caught fire and extinguished it by 12:28pm.

Crew Manager Ollie Ford from Newport Fire Station said: “We’d like to praise the neighbours for calling us to this incident and we’d encourage residents to call us when you hear someone’s smoke alarms going off.

"Smome alarms save lives and if you hear someone's smoke alarms going off - whether it's your neighbours or you are just passing by - please act quickly to call us. Don't assume somebody else has already called us.

"Our advice to stay safe while cooking is to keep an eye any cooking on the hob at all times. If you need to leave the room when cooking, take pans off of the heat and make sure to clear the hob after you’ve finished cooking.”

More than half of accidental fires at home are started by cooking - follow our cooking safety advice to stay safe in your kitchen:

• Take care if you need to leave the kitchen while cooking. Take pans off the heat or turn them down to avoid risk
• Avoid leaving children in the kitchen alone when cooking on the hob.  Keep matches and saucepan handles out of their reach to keep them safe
• Make sure saucepan handles don’t stick out – so they don’t get knocked off the stove
• Take care if you’re wearing loose clothing – this can easily catch fire
• Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker and hob
• Double check the cooker is off when you’ve finished cooking

Do you have working smoke alarms?

This incident highlights the importance of smoke alarms. We recommend you have at least one working smoke alarm on every level of your home to keep you and your family safe.

You can book a free Home Fire Safety visit by either popping into your local fire station, calling 0300 303 0088 or booking a visit online at essex-fire.gov.uk/book

Could you be an on-call firefighter?

Firefighters from Newport and Saffron Walden are on-call firefighters, who all live or work within 5 minutes of an on-call fire station and attend incidents.

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

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