House wrecked by smoke after candle sets fire to bed

Firefighters say a smoke alarm helped to avert a much worse incident

A fire alarm alerted the victim to the blaze which had ignited his bed at an address in Lynton Road, Tyldesley, at 10.10pm on Thursday.

Ringing 999, he fled the property but not before inhaling quite a lot of smoke, and he needed treatment from paramedics at the scene, although he did not require hospital treatment.

A fire crew from Atherton station attended the blaze which was quickly extinguished but not before it had destroyed the bed and caused smoke damage to much of the rest of the property.

Crew manager Phil Dearden had messages to deliver about both the alarm and the candle.

He said: "A working smoke alarm has done its job here. The young man was downstairs and was alerted to the bedroom fire before it took further hold and he was able to get out of the house by the time he was there. His mum had been out at the time and there was no-one else inside.

"It shows just how important it is to have a working smoke alarm and they are available free from the fire service by ringing 0800 555815.

"As far as candles are concerned, we always advise that lit ones are not left in a room unattended."

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