Attic room gutted after bathroom extractor fan causes Wigan house fire

Smoke alarms prevented further damage being done to the end terrace property on Haigh Road, Haigh, as the mum was able to call the emergency services quicker than she might otherwise have done.

It also meant that the two crews from Wigan fire station, who deployed an aerial ladder during the emergency, were able to prevent it from spreading to the neighbouring address which was not occupied at the time.

A woman was in the house on her own when the alarms went off at about 5pm on Monday October 2.

While the flames were tackled from inside by firefighters wearing breathing gear and armed with a hose, the crews also needed to remove some of the slates on the roof, using the ladder, to ensure the fire was out and clean up before replacing the slates.

Crew manager Simon Pheasant said: “The cause was a bathroom extractor fan which somehow caught fire and the flames spread to the loft conversion room above.

"While that room was badly damaged, the situation could have been far worse had not the smoke alarms been installed. We were able to contain the fire to the attic both in terms of other rooms and the house next door.

"Please make sure that you have smoke alarms and that they are in working order. If not, get in touch with your local fire station and we will sort you out.”

Crews were at the scene for about two and a half hours.