Refuse safety warning following house fire

Crews from Burton and Barton-under-Needwood were alerted just after 3am and two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus and using a hose reel jet tackled the fire on All Saints Road.

A sofa bed left outside the front door of the house had been deliberately set alight and the resulting severe fire caused extensive damage to the property, extending upwards through the roof.

“Luckily, the property was empty, so there were no casualties resulting from this incident. However, if people had been living here, we may have been looking at a different outcome this morning,” said Paul Cullen, Station Manager.

“We have noticed that a number of properties in this area have unwanted items of furniture outside and we would encourage residents to make sure they are removed as soon as possible because they may be at an increased risk of fire.

“This incident serves as a reminder to householders not to leave unwanted household items or rubbish outside their property, where it could become a large fire risk, if set alight deliberately.”