'Mummy our flat's on fire': Quick-thinking girl, 5, raises alarm in Black Country tower block blaze
A quick-thinking five-year-old girl spotted flames and smoke, alerting her mother to evacuate their flat during a fire at a Black Country tower block.
A five-year-old schoolgirl who spotted flames and smoke raised the alarm by telling her mother their high rise flat was on fire.
The youngster was having her hair brushed by her mother at their home, in St Giles Court, in Reservoir Road, Rowley Regis, when she noticed there was smoke billowing from the balcony outside the lounge door shortly after 11.30 on Saturday morning.
Around 30 firefighters tackled the incident its height after the family immediately evacuated their seventh-floor flat and went to get help.
Miss Annor told the Express & Star: “I was combing her hair and I went to the kitchen to grab some stuff and then she just called me and said ‘Mummy fire'. I haven’t been on the balcony for about a year and I thought may be she was playing a joke on me or something, so I opened the door and saw some fire coming up.
“It was just black flame and I just panicked. I just panicked and I came out and rang the concierge to clear everyone from the building and they phoned the fire service. I banged on my neighbours' door to let them know."
“I don’t know what was on fire. I don’t go out there, we don’t use the balcony. Donatella has got some toys which were out there.”
Donatella added: “I saw a big fire. I told her and we went and knocked on the doors to tell everybody to get out.”
The 28-year-old support worker said she had been living at the high rise block off Uplands Avenue for less than a year. She said she was unable to return to the property and added that Sandwell Council was due to find her temporary accommodation.
As the drama unfolded at the 82-flat block many residents gathered in the street to watch the emergency services in action.
West Midlands Fire Service said no-one was hurt and that there was no need to lead anyone to safety from the tower block which has a nil evacuation policy due to its internal fittings.
St Giles Court resident Ellie Willis, aged 23, explained: “We live on the 12th floor. I went into my bedroom at about 11.30 and saw this thick black smoke going upwards outside the window. I shouted to my mate Lauren to tell her about it. She told my son Caden who’s three-years-old to go to me and we went out the door and headed down the stairs. There 24 flights of stairs, but we wanted to get out.
“I phoned 999. We were the first three people to get out. We left our shoes behind.
“I was told that the lady whose flat was on fire ran downstairs and was shouting for someone to call the emergency services.
“Most people came outside as well. My son was sobbing as he couldn’t understand what was going on. My mother came round to see what was going on and she’s taken him home with her as it was too much for him.
“There was lots of fire engines and about three ambulances here.”
Rowley Regis resident Adrian Truslove, who lives near the tower block, said: “I was alerted to the fire because I could see the smoke from my back garden so I went upstairs and could see smoke from the area of the flats.
“So I walked up to the flats and I could see a fire coming from the balcony area and out of the French doors.
“And I would like to say that the emergency services were doing a great job of protecting the public.”
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