CFA firefighters have rescued a man and his dog from a burning home in Wyndham Vale.
CFA was notified of a house fire on Dampier Street at around 4am yesterday morning (12 November).
Six CFA units from Wyndham Vale, Eltham and Werribee attended the scene, with support from Fire Rescue Victoria crews.
Wyndham Vale Captain and Incident Controller Trevor Weston said crews arrived on scene to find a single-storey home well alight.
“When we arrived the front of the house was well alight,” he said.
“We were made aware the switchboard was located inside the main bedroom, which was impacted by fire, which made it challenging to initiate the fire fight.
“We notified Powercor personnel who isolated the structure from the street so we could continue without work safely.”
The fire was threatening neighbouring homes, but crews did a fantastic job to effectively stop the fire from spreading.
“There were embers and smoke heading towards neighbouring properties, but we worked with neighbours to make sure they were safe and save their properties,” Captain Weston said.
He said crews also rescued one occupant after it was understood they self-evacuated and re-entered the property.
“Our crews located an occupant who had collapsed just inside the property and we brought them and their dog to safety,” he said.
“This is a timely reminder for anyone who finds themselves in a house fire to self-evacuate as soon as you’re made aware of the fire and not to re-enter while the fire is ongoing.”
The incident was deemed under control just before 4.20am.
The occupant was handed into the care of paramedics
Firefighters declared the scene safe just before 7am.
“As always, CFA and FRV crews communicated extremely well which led to a successful fire fight,” Captain Weston said.
The scene was handed over to Victoria Police to lead an investigation into the cause of the incident.
A working smoke alarm was installed in the house, which was a timely reminder for people to make sure their smoke alarms are in good, working condition.
For more information about smoke alarms, visit www.cfa.vic.gov.au/silenceisdeadly.
Smoke alarm tips:
- CFA recommend smoke alarms are installed in every bedroom, hallway and living area.
- Smoke alarms should be interconnected so that when any alarm activates, all smoke alarms will sound.
- Smoke alarms should be interconnected so that when any alarm activates, all smoke alarms will sound.
- All smoke alarms, including 240v hardwired, should be replaced every 10 years.
- Fire services also recommend the use of smoke alarms powered by a 10-year lithium battery.
- Replaceable batteries in a smoke alarm need to be changed yearly.
- Smoke alarms should be tested monthly as per the manufacturer’s guide, by pressing the test button on the alarm and wait for the test alarm to sound.
- Smoke alarms should be cleaned at least once a year with a duster or vacuum cleaner to remove particles that will affect smoke alarm performance.
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