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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Stephen Maguire & Charlie Duffield

Hero boy saves his little brother from house blaze after phone charger catches fire

A boy in Donegal called Donnacha McCauley luckily escaped a scary incident at his family home in Ramelton earlier this week, with just a few burns.

If it wasn't for the heroic actions of his older 15-year-old brother Dualtach, the scenario would have been much worse.

Mum Nicola McCauley shared how she put her six year old son to bed earlier in the evening, and he was followed by his older brother at 11.30pm.

But just before she went to bed with her husband Ryan, disaster struck, reports the Irish Mirror.

She said: "I heard a scream and then Dualtach shouted my name.

"He woke up when Donnacha cried and saw flames, so he jumped from the top bunk and pulled Donnacha out of the bottom bunk bed which was on fire.

Little Donnacha McCauley is lucky to have escaped with only burns (Irish Mirror)

"I screamed to get the rest of the house up and out and Ryan started pouring water on it.

"We luckily had a fire extinguisher in the kitchen so I ran to get that.

"By the 30 seconds I was away, the room was filled with smoke and flames which were getting bigger but thankfully we were able to get the fire out at that stage."

The parents discovered Donnacha had several burns and took him to Letterkenny University Hospital straight away.

Nicola and Ryan, who are originally from Letterkenny, commended staff that tended to their young son.

Little Donnacha McCauley’s bedding. He was who is lucky to have escaped with only burns after a charger went on fire in his home (Irish Mirror)

Nicola revealed: "He has burns to his head, hand, toes, and leg but thankfully nothing too bad, and he is now home and lapping up the attention. His mattress duvet and sheet were all destroyed."

The family returned home and found the cause of the fire in the boys' room - a phone charger.

Nicola said that her late mother Bridget, who died in 2016, and her sister Theresa, who passed away this year, must have had them in their prayers.

She added: "We checked and seen the cause of the fire was a charger, a genuine charger, not a cheap one. It was plugged into the wall, not into the tablet, it must have overheated, and his mattress caught fire.

"Mammy and Theresa must have been looking down on us when you see the damage to his pyjamas, duvet and mattress. He is lucky to be here and thank God Dualtach woke and had the sense to save his wee brother, or it could be a far worse outcome.

Little Donnacha McCauley with his mum in hospital (Irish Mirror)

"So please keep the charger off when not in use. Apart from a big shock and Donnacha’s burns we are all here alive and kicking and a hard lesson learned."

Dad Ryan added that Dualtach, a third-year student at Mulroy College in MIlford, was a real hero.

He added: "We wouldn't want anything like this to happen to any other family. It was so close to being a real disaster. Dualtach was just amazing."

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