A 92-year-old man was woken up by the fire service after his shed was set ablaze on the hottest day of the year. On Monday, Jeffery James was woken up by the fire crew at his door, asking for access to his back garden. When he went to see what had happened, he was shocked to find flames appearing behind his garden shed.
The fire happened at around 5.15am, in the gully between Grand Avenue and Vachell Road, Caerau. Mr James has lived on Grand Avenue for the last 60 years and said he has never experienced anything like this before.
After the fire brigade left, Mr James phoned his son, Peter James, 61, to let him know what had happened. Peter said: “As soon as I got there, I went down to the gully and it was horrendous, I just couldn’t believe it. I knew my dad had CCTV so I went to check the cameras.
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“He was a very lucky man, had it been windy - as it was the hottest day on Monday morning - I think the situation would have been a lot worse. Nothing like this has happened on the street before.”
Luckily for Mr James, he had no valuables in the shed - only his own rubbish and litter he picked up that had been left in the gully. Peter has since contacted the council to clear up the mess and debris left behind from the fire.
“When my father realised what had happened he was shocked, he’s 93 this year and was not in a good way [after the news of the fire]. He’s fine now that he knows it [the investigation] is progressing,” he said.
Peter has also taken to Facebook, appealing for anyone who has any information to contact the police.
He added: “I’m thankful that the council acted swiftly, and the police of course. But especially the fire brigade - they were there 15 minutes after the fire started and they turned up at the right time. The fire was out in minutes and they followed through with my dad, by putting security measures in his home - they’re fantastic.”
South Wales Police have been contacted for comment.
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