A man living next door to a home which caught fire and spread to adjoining houses said he “wouldn’t have got out” if it wasn’t for people rushing around and “banging on the windows” and telling him to “run away”.
Firefighters were called to Arundel Avenue near Sefton Park at around 1.20pm on Saturday April 15 following reports a house had caught fire. Neighbours told the ECHO they heard what sounded like a “massive truck crashing” before smoke started to pour from the roof of the two-storey property.
Crews were on the scene in less than ten minutes and rescued one occupant from the burning building who, in a statement released shortly after firefighters began to tackle the blaze, was said to have been led to safety “conscious and breathing". Merseyside Fire and Rescue confirmed yesterday the man was later taken to hospital for treatment for “slight smoke inhalation”.
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A total of six fire engines and an aerial appliance attended the scene. Two firefighters in the crane above the property could be heard shouting “out, out” before the roof collapsed due to the raging fire.
One resident, who was on their back garden before the blaze broke out, said they'd heard what sounded like a “massive truck crashing”. After the fire started it spread from the roof space to the adjoining terraced property.
Gabriel Pradal, 21, lives at one of the neighbouring homes and said he was not initially aware a fire had broken out as he was listening to loud music while cooking. He said he only became aware when people living nearby ran around and started “banging on the window” and telling him to “run away.”
Mr Pradal, who is studying business at the University of Liverpool, said he “wouldn’t have got out of the house if it wasn’t for them” and was thankful he was able to vacate the property safely with their help. His housemate, Eoin Russell, 21, who is studying medicine also at the University of Liverpool, was at the gym when the fire started but returned home to see the fire raging.
After the fire was brought under control, firefighters continued to check for hotspots and to dampen down the affected properties. A cause for the fire has yet to be established.
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