A family lost almost everything after a fire ravaged their home. The Cadman family - single dad Colin and his children - were lucky to escape after an electrical fault in their Chester flat caused a ‘serious’ fire on Tuesday April 19.
Their home, at Wellington Place, on St Anne Street in Newtown, has been destroyed by the blaze, with most family keepsakes and the children's’ belongings deemed beyond salvageable. Mr Cadman, a single father of six, has five of his children in his full-time care.
He is a doting dad to Kyle, 15, Abigail, 13, Libby, 10, Luke, seven, and Jacob, five, as well as his eldest daughter Amy, 17, who lives with their mum. He told CheshireLive that the family were all at home when the fire broke out, except for 13-year-old Abigail who was travelling home from school on the bus.
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He said: “I was cleaning downstairs and heard Kyle shouting for me to quickly come upstairs. He had smelt a burning smell whilst gaming in his bedroom and found smoke on the landing. We checked the source of the smoke and found a fire on my bed.
“He (Kyle) quickly rushed the younger children out of the home and called for the fire brigade, while I tried to douse the flames. Once they were out, I checked underneath the bed and found a larger fire. Kyle tried to help me, but I sent him outside to keep him safe.
"I instantly poured water beneath the bed with a wet towel across my face to reduce smoke inhalation, but sadly I wasn’t able to stop the fire. I quickly thought to go grab a family heirloom from the top drawer and escaped outside. Smoke was filling the house by this point and was billowing out the window.”
Emergency services raced to the scene, and luckily the family managed to escape and no one was injured. Outside, neighbours helped Colin calm his children down, especially Abigail who had seen the fire from the window of the bus and was “extremely worried” about her family.
Images captured by witnesses show flames ‘leaping’ out of the window of the flat. Cheshire Fire and Rescue quickly worked to extinguish the fire and make sure it did not spread any further.
The Cadman’s home was destroyed. Colin explained that the family had only been living there for the past 12 months and almost everything inside was new. Just last year, the family dealt with a huge blow when their home was burgled.
“My bedroom no longer exists,” Colin said. “The ceiling and some of the floor have completely burnt away, as has furniture, my clothes, family photo albums and keepsakes. The girls’ bedroom is fire and smoke damaged, as is the boys bedroom. All of downstairs has water damage.”
Not only did the children experience such a traumatic event, but many of their favourite teddies, toys, clothes and memories have “gone up in smoke”. The family are currently living in temporary accommodation while they are getting help to look for something more permanent.
But Colin is desperate to settle his kids down again in a proper home. The home was not insured, and so Colin has been encouraged to set up a Go Fund Me page to help raise money to “get their lives back in order”. All funds raised will help replace the furnishing of the flat and the children’s belongings.
Colin is proud of his teenage son’s quick reaction to the fire, and although heartbroken by the loss, he is confident his family will recover. He is also grateful for the help and support of his community.
He said: “Thankfully, it happened during the day, so we were all awake and able to exit safely. I get emotional at the thought of what could have happened during the night when we were all asleep.
“The younger children seem to be coping well and I’m proud of how Kyle assisted me and his quick-thinking. I’m also thankful for the fire service and the police for assisting us.”
