Press Release

Volunteers help during holiday blazes

28.12.2007

British Red Cross volunteers have interrupted their own festivities to help families recover from house fires over Christmas.

The residents of a thatched cottage in Burgate in Hampshire were hosting a Boxing Day party for friends and family when smoke alarms warned them of a fire spreading rapidly in the roof.

The Hampshire fire and rescue service was called at 8.45 pm and they requested support from the Red Cross fire and emergency support service (FESS).

Ruth Crouch, FESS coordinator in Hampshire and Isle of Wight, said: “Two volunteers – Colin Manzalaoui and Terry Mair – gave the residents emotional and practical support. Fortunately, nobody was injured and the village was very supportive of the family. Our volunteers were on hand to give advice about what to do next and to ensure the family had a place to go to.”

Fires in Hampshire

The thatched cottage fire was the third incident Hampshire FESS has responded to over the holiday period. On the morning of Saturday 22 December volunteers Terry Mair and Dave Boulter went to Basingstoke to help a man who came home from work to find his house gutted by fire.

And on Christmas Eve three volunteers – Ruth Crouch, Maureen Powell and Ian Hunter – helped a vulnerable elderly couple after their kitchen caught fire.

Ruth explained: “The kitchen needed to be professionally cleaned so we made arrangements for a salvage company and the insurance company to visit the couple the next day. Considering it was Christmas Eve, we did surprisingly well.”