PHOTOS: Electrical fault in fridge causes kitchen fire

Firefighters were called to a kitchen fire in Parkeston last night after an electrical fault in a fridge caused a fire.

Crews were called to Tyler Street in Parkeston at 8:16pm when neighbours heard smoke alarms going off.

On arrival, crews reported that the flat was 100% smoke logged and worked to ensure that nobody was inside the property.

Firefighters extinguished the fire by 8:58pm. The fire was caused by an electrical fault within the fridge.

The kitchen was destroyed and the family that live at the flat have been rendered homeless due to the smoke damage.

Crew Manager Norman Gooch from Dovercourt Fire Station said: “Crews worked quickly to ensure nobody was inside this flat as usually a family that live here are home at this time of the evening but thankfully they were not home.

“Due to the hard work and professionalism of the firefighters, the fire was prevented from spreading throughout the flat and water damage to the flat below was kept to a minimum.

“Sadly, the family have been rendered homeless due to the smoke damage and have lost all of their possessions.

“This incident really highlights why it is so important to have working smoke alarms and why you should act on it if you hear smoke alarms going off. Whether it’s at your home or you hear your neighbours alarms going off or you are passing by, smoke alarms alert us to the first signs of fire.

“If you hear smoke alarms going off, dial 999 and ask for the fire service."

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 in.

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 at home, please get in touch with our Service. Visit essex-fire.gov.uk/book or call 0300 303 0088.

Register your appliances today

Have you ever checked if your fridge, tumble dryer or washing machine have been recalled for safety reasons?

Registermyappliance.org.uk lets you put in the your appliance model info and contact details so that, should there ever be safety issues around your white goods, you’ll be made aware and can safely send them off for recall.

You can register appliances that are up to 12 years old with almost all manufacturers.  You can register new and second hand appliances.

Could you be an on-call firefighter?

Clacton, Dovercourt and Manningtree fire stations are recruiting on-call firefighters; people 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.

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