Working smoke alarm saves family in Pontardawe

This morning (04/02/2016) at 7.16am firefighters from Morriston and Pontardawe attended a property fire in Pontardawe. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The family were woken by their smoke alarm, which alerted them to a small fire in the kitchen. The fire was extinguished before the arrival of the Fire Service. Firefighters were involved in making the cooker safe; using a Positive Pressure Ventilation Fan to ventilate the property, and carried out hot strike. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The family were conveyed to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Swansea Community Safety Watch Manager, Derick Ford, who attended the incident, advises, ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to have a working smoke alarm in your home. Fires in homes with a working smoke alarm are likely to be discovered more quickly than those without, and allow occupants more time to escape from their property”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“A working smoke alarm really can make the difference between life and death”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

You can request a home fire safety check for yourself or for a dependent relative by contacting the Service on 0800 169 1234. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

A home fire safety check only takes about 30 minutes to complete and is undertaken by two Fire Service representatives. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

A Home Fire Safety Check consists of installing a 10 year smoke alarm on each level of the home. To further protect yourselves; home owners are advised to switch unused appliances off, close all doors as a part of their bed time routines, and to plan your escape in the event of a fire occurring at their property”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​