Clothes horse sparks fire at family home

The blaze was in one of the bedrooms of the Maltby property and is believed to have started after a clothes horse fell on top of electrical equipment and caught fire.

Three fire crews from Maltby, Aston and Rotherham stations were called to the incident on Lansbury Avenue yesterday (Thursday) afternoon.

The family was already outof the property home when crews arrived after their smoke alarm – which had been fitted by South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue – alerted them to the blaze.

Crews left the scene at 2.30pm.

Here’s SYFR’s top 10 tips for staying safe at home:

1. Make sure you have smoke alarms on every floor of your home
2. Smoke alarms save lives, but only if they are working, test them regularly.
3. Take extra care in the kitchen and never leave cooking unattended
4. Never, ever use a chip pan or any other pan filled with hot oil
5. Don’t overload electric sockets – most can only take a maximum of 13 amps
6. Keep matches and lighters away from children
7. Keep clothes well away from heaters and open fires
8. Put out cigarettes properly and dispose of them carefully
9. Don’t charge things like mobile phones, tablets or e-cigs overnight, or longer than the recommended charging time
10. Plan an escape route and make sure everyone in the house knows how to get out in the event of a fire