Hero dad rescues his kids from house fire
Published: October 12, 2006
A HEROIC father saved his two children and neighbours from a fire which devastated two houses and damaged another.
More than 50 firefighters spent all night tackling the blaze in High Street, Barkway, near Royston, which started in the roof of a house.
The father-of-two was alerted to the fire at around 11pm on Tuesday when he heard water from a burst pipe running down the side of his home. When he went to investigate, he saw his roof was on fire.
He rushed back into the house and woke his two sleeping children - a oneyear- old boy and a four-yearold girl.
He then alerted the neighbours of two adjoining properties, occupied by two men who were thought to be sleeping at the time, and called 999.
The fire quickly took hold and spread to a 400-year-old listed thatched property next door.
Neighbour Catherine Pryce, whose property was not affected by fire, told the News how she and her husband Dan had thought Halloween had come early because of all the shouting outside and the bonfire smell.
She said: “When we saw the fire, there was lots of exploding and popping of tiles - then the thatch caught.
“We got our hosepipe and dampened down the areas near the fire so it wouldn’t spread to nearby houses and gardens.
“I understand the children’s mother was with a neighbour - thankfully, by the time he realised what had happened, her husband had saved her children’s lives.”
Another resident told how she had cared for the saved children.
“The little girl was shaking,” she said.
Pete Chapman, from Royston Fire Station, who was part of the team carrying out the recovery operation on Wednesday, said, while he would never recommend people going into a property which is on fire, the father’s actions had greatly reduced the risk of life loss.
He said “We are extremely relieved he did what he did.
“Otherwise, the situation could certainly have been a lot worse.”
He also praised the actions of firefighters who worked hard to successfully retain the fire in the rooves of the properties. There were no casualties.
The High Street was expected to remain closed until Wednesday evening while the buildings were made safe.
All the properties involved had fully functional smoke detectors.
Fire crews will educate nearby residents over the next few days on the importance of smoke alarms and on how to protect thatched roofs from fire.
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