News release text
A dog was rescued in Wrotham this morning (Thursday), after a neighbour heard the smoke alarm sounding and discovered the kitchen full of smoke.
The neighbour forced entry through the back door of the mid-terraced house in Thorndyke Way, turned the cooker off and took the dog out of the house.
Two fire engines were sent to property and found the cooker had accidentally been switched on, setting fire to a tea towel left on the cooker top.
Larkfield Watch Manager, Mitchell Kelly, said: “Fortunately, this was a minor incident but fires can spread very quickly. As we’ve seen today, working smoke alarms are the best early warning system you can have if you are unlucky enough to have a fire in your home.”
“Obviously, our advice would always be never go into a building that has a fire, leave that to the fire service. But, on this occasion, we do acknowledge the brave actions of the neighbour.”
The fire caused only minor damage to the kitchen worktop, the rest of the house was smoke damaged.
Mitchell added: “The safest option is to make sure cookers and other appliances are always fully switched off after use and never store items around ovens and hobs.”
