A former firefighter rescued an elderly lady from a house fire on Anglesey that he happened upon on his way to the gym.
David Flinn had just finished a late shift as a postal worker and was driving to his local gym when he saw smoke coming out of a bungalow in a residential area in Menai Bridge earlier this week.
Upon seeing the fire, the 45-year-old immediately stopped his car, called the fire service and ran to the property to see if anyone was inside.
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The father-of-three knocked on the front door, but there was no answer. Luckily, however, the door was open and he was able to gain entry into the property.
“When I entered the bungalow I shouted to see if anyone was in. I didn’t hear anything at first, but then I heard some groans coming from the living room, which was the only room in the building where the door was closed,” David said.
(Image: Helen Flinn)
“I have 13 years of experience as a firefighter and I know what to do in these circumstances so I knelt down towards the door and opened it slowly.
“At this point, smoke came billowing out, filling the hallway I was standing in. I couldn’t see anything in the living room due to the smoke, but I eventually saw the woman who was coughing heavily on her hands and knees.
“I dragged her from the living room but it was a struggle to get her any further because she was a dead weight. Luckily a woman was driving by at this point and I managed to flag her down and she helped me get her out.”
Within approximately five minutes of evacuating the lady from her property, the emergency services arrived at the scene and an ambulance took her to hospital.
The fire service has since confirmed that she did not suffer any serious injuries and was discharged shortly afterwards.
“All in all, it was quite a mad morning. I’ve not been in the fire service for around two years so I’ve not been involved in this kind of situation for some time.
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“Personally, I think the house could have gone up if it had been left for a few more minutes. Luckily a police officer and her husband, who works for a gas company, live nearby. The husband turned the gas off in case the bungalow went up.
“Obviously these kind of situations are best left to the fire service, but I felt compelled to help given my experience. Things could have gone either way, but I’m just happy that I was able to get the resident to safety.”
A spokesperson for North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were called to this house fire in Menai Bridge at 9:52am on November 15.
“Three appliances attended and the stop was called in at 1:51pm.
“A casualty – an elderly lady – was conveyed to hospital prior to arrival of our fire crews and it is believed that she did not sustain serious injuries, possible smoke inhalation and was later discharged.
“Crews used four sets of breathing apparatus, two hose reel jets and a thermal imaging camera in tackling the fire. Fire investigation concluded that the incident was accidental – caused by an electrical fault located in the living room.”
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