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Councillor narrowly escapes 'scary' house fire

Alistair Binney,in Hallowand
Alex McIntyre,West Midlands
BBC Mel Fordington - a woman wearing with short blonde hair, wearing an orange cap and a black and white jacket - smiles slightly as she stands in a fire-damaged room.BBC
Mel Fordington, of Worcestershire County Council, described the experience as "very scary"

A councillor who narrowly escaped a house fire has spoken about her "very scary" experience and urged others to ensure they have a plan in place if it happens to them.

Mel Fordington, of Worcestershire County Council, was woken by the fire alarm after a blaze broke out in the living room of her home just outside Hallow, at about 04:00 GMT on Tuesday.

She and her husband Carl managed to find their way out of the property, through thick black smoke, before the fire service arrived and extinguished the blaze.

The Hallow representative said she first thought it was a car alarm sounding before she went downstairs and could "feel the heat" through the living room door.

"I was like 'oh my god, we're in trouble'," she told BBC Hereford and Worcester.

"It made all my emergency alarms ring in my head. I just thought, 'we need to get out of this house'."

Mel Fordington A living room with a wood-burning stove in an alcove with a chimney, is severely damaged by fire. A firefighter crouches down on the right next to a large, blackened cabinet.Mel Fordington
The fire severely damaged Mel Fordington's living room

Fordington went back upstairs to wake her husband then made their way out of the house and called 999.

"The smoke was everywhere - it was black. Walking in that smoke was very, very scary," she said.

The incident has left parts of her home, particularly the living room, severely damaged.

As well as losing furniture, the couple also lost sentimental family items, including photos.

"Memories such as these are precious but we've got a life and I'm able to share this story with everyone," she added.

A close-up of a bookcase with shelves full of books and small statuettes, which have been damaged and blackened in a fire.
The fire damaged many of Mel Fordington's possessions, including a number of books and sentimental items

According to Fordington, the fire started when embers got into the living room after something damaged the chimney.

The Conservative councillor said it had left her "emotional" but wanted to use the experience to warn others about the importance of preparing for such an event.

She said: "I want to make sure everyone knows that you need to have a clear plan, even if you're panicking, crying, screaming, and everything's going wrong."

Measures include memorising the quickest way out and ensuring exits are not blocked, Fordington added.

"Every person, every child, needs to have a planned route and make sure their exit points are always clear, that's number one," she said.

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