IT can take less than five minutes for the first signs of smouldering to turn into a raging inferno in the average home.
That’s less than five minutes before temperatures reach a height where the human body simply cannot survive.
This is the shocking truth Dorset Fire and Rescue Service firefighters are only too familiar with.
These same firefighters have attended an unprecedented 11 fatal house fires in 2008, a number that transformed the county’s house fire death total from the best in the UK to the worst, per capita, in just 12 months.
The Daily Echo has teamed up with Dorset firefighters in a bid to end to this toll of misery – a toll of misery affecting mainly isolated, elderly or “at risk” locals.
This week, as Christmas fast approaches, county fire chiefs have launched a hard-hitting media campaign promoting home fire safety checks.
DFRS prevention policy manager Roy Pinder investigated one of the recent fatal fires, which killed a popular Bournemouth mum.
He said: “We think she’d been smoking and drinking in her chair and she accidentally set herself on fire.
“She got up and moved into the kitchen to try to put herself out in the sink, but the act of moving at speed actually accelerated the burning.
“Her daughter returned from work to find the house on fire and her mother smouldering on the floor.
“It was obviously traumatising for her – it will stay with me forever.
“It was a very, very unpleasant experience with disastrous consequences for the woman and her immediate family. It had a big effect on me and I am sure everyone in the fire crew that attended.”
Careless use of cigarettes and alcohol, combustible materials strewn next to electric bar heaters, build-ups of grease and grime in the kitchen, blocked escape routes, no working smoke alarms... these are just some of the tell-tale signs that should get your alarm bells ringing if you spot them in a home in your neighbourhood.
And don't forget Christmas trees can be dangerous too...
Roy said: “It is the grandchildren and children of these isolated people we are appealing to. These are the people we need to get to.
“Someone, somewhere will be crossing the threshold of a home they feel could be at risk. Please get in touch with us and we will be able to come out and carry out a home fire safety check.”
The checks are free and nothing will be done without the homeowner’s consent.
“An Englishman’s home is his castle, so we cannot just go into a house without permission,” said Roy. “But if we are contacted by a worried third party, whoever that may be, we will make a visit.”
Firefighters hope to make that first visit within four days of the call. They have 10,000 free smoke alarms and specialised equipment, including deaf alarms, they can tailor to the individual.
If you are concerned about the living conditions of a relative or neighbour call 01202 538282 in the Bournemouth conurbation, or 01305 252786 or 01305 252788 for the Dorchester area today.
