Neighbours praised for calling fire service when hearing smoke alarms

Do you have working smoke alarms in your home?

Firefighters are highlighting the importance of having working smoke alarms after we were called to a kitchen fire by neighbours who heard smoke alarms going off.

Crews were called to a house fire in High View Avenue, Grays at 1:17pm after neighbours called 999 when they heard smoke alarms going off and could smell smoke.

On arrival, crews reported there was a pan on fire on the hob and the fire was spreading to the kitchen cabinets.

Firefighters extinguished the fire by 1:52pm.

Watch Manager Gary Bannister from Grays Fire Station said: “This incident is the second incident Essex crews have been called to today where neighbours have called us when hearing smoke alarms.

“This highlights why it is so important to have working smoke alarms at home as not only do they alert you, but they alert neighbours and passers-by to a fire. If you hear smoke alarms going off, please dial 999…please don’t assume somebody else has already called.

“We’d like to praise the neighbours who acted quickly in this incident to call us. A pan on the hob had been accidentally left on the heat and the residents had gone out. If this fire had been burning for longer, it could have spread across the house.”

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

• If you need to leave the kitchen while cooking, take pans off the heat or turn them down to reduce the risk of fires starting
• Double check the cooker is off when you’ve finished cooking
• 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. This helps to make sure they don’t get knocked off the stove
• Take care if you’re wearing loose clothing – this can easily catch fire
• Keep tea towels, cloths and other flammable objects away from the cooker and hob

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.