Sad Start To The New Year On Our Street

[Kaz200]

About 2:30am our lights were flickering intermittently and one of our dogs was barking. We smelt smoke and I ran out the front to see smoke billowing down the street. Ran up about 5 houses to see a flat in a block of units on fire with 20 ft flames visible from behind the roof, windows all blown out. Called the fire brigade who arrived within minutes, but sadly too late for the man who lived there and was still inside.

I don't know how long the fire was burning before we got there but it only took moments to engulf the unit basically, luckily it didn't spread further down to our house or any of our neighbours. The embers coming downwind from the unit were huge.

Lucky for us we were awake either way, but a vivid reminder to check all your smoke alarms and have a plan in case of fire. As far as I understand most people suffocate from smoke inhalation long before the fire gets to them.

Sorry for the cops and fire brigade who have such a shite job, and on NYD no less.

RIP to the deceased, and have a safe new year everyone else.

[saff_cossie]

Very sad, RIP, not a nice way to start the new year.

[(B1) MR_fanny]

smoke alarms and dogs save lives! my dad is always disconecting the living room alarm because it always goes off when cooking and im always having to reconnect it. mabe i should buy him a dog...or those cooking extractor fan thingys.

is it me or has this years or should i say last years holiday period been particularly tragic with all the house fires, dog attacks and drownings and stuff?

[Kaz200]

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22993812-29277,00.html

no smoke alarms installed

B1 maybe you should just not burn the food

[SS8_Gohan]

for the kitchen smoke alarms, just grab a magazine or something similar and "fan" the smoke alarm, it will soon dissipate the smoke around the sensors and will turn it off. Then you don't have to constant take batteries in and out and possibly risk forgetting to put them back in

[(B1) MR_fanny]

i think ill need to hire a whole pit crew just for cooking and sit back and watch...ha would make a great add for something