Flat fire could have sparked '˜catastrophic' explosion

Firefighters raced to a flat in The Martindales at Clayton-le-Woods near Leyland just before midnight believing the occupant was trapped inside.

When they arrived they found the man had escaped from the premises, although he needed treatment from paramedics for the inhalation of smoke.

“He had a very lucky escape,” said one of the firefighters from Bamber Bridge who attended.

“He had been asleep on the couch in the living room when the fire started on the cooker in the kitchen. Fortunately the flat had working smoke detectors and they woke him.

“He managed to get himself out and, when we got into the property, we found the fire had all-but burned itself out.

“Considering the cooker was next to the gas boiler, he was fortunate there wasn’t a catastrophic explosion.

“The original call we got was to a flat fire. But then it was upgraded to ‘persons reported’ because the 999 call had come from within the premises and then the line had gone dead. It was thought someone was still in there.

“He has been very fortunate that the incident wasn’t far more serious. But it underlines the fact that working smoke alarms can be lifesavers.”

The man was given oxygen by an ambulance crew, but did not need hospital treatment.