Major warning after deadly house fire linked to popular household item
Firefighters have responded to thousands of house fires this year, with 10 per cent of the blazes caused by a common item found in every household.
Firefighters have issued a major warning after a popular household item caused a major and deadly fire to rip through a home in Sydney’s Upper North Shore.
Emergency services were called to a property on Adamson Ave in Thornleigh shortly after 7.40am on Thursday after reports of a fire.
It took NSW Fire and Rescue half an hour to extinguish the flames before firefighters searched the home.
They confirmed smoke alarms were fitted in the home at the time of the blaze.
“The occupants had left for work earlier that morning,” a statement read.
“Unfortunately, their pet cat and dog were overcome by the smoke in the home and died.”
Fire and Rescue NSW is investigating whether the house fire was caused by an overloaded power board.
Emergency services have responded to more than 3000 fires in homes so far this year, with nearly 10 per cent of blazes triggered by overloaded power boards.
Power boards should be fitted with safety switches and circuit breakers, which monitor the flow of electricity and automatically powers off if an overload is detected.
To prevent sparks and fires, firefighters urged residents to regularly check that all plugs are firmly fixed into power boards and are given enough space for proper ventilation.
“Never overload your power boards or power points,” Fire and Rescue NSW said.
Originally published as Major warning after deadly house fire linked to popular household item
