Shock as fierce blaze guts mid-terrace home in Mitcham, Surrey
Fire ripped through a three-bedroom mid-terrace house on Hoylake Gardens in Mitcham in the early hours of Monday, leaving it 75% destroyed. A man, believed to have been asleep when the fire broke out, remains in hospital after leaping from a first-floor window that melted in the intense heat.
Man escapes burning home by jumping through melted window
The terrified occupant was trapped as thick black smoke filled his room. “Fire! Fire!” his friend shouted, urging him to escape. With the window frame warped by flames, he took a desperate leap to safety.
Four others treated, fire crews battle blaze at dawn
Four other men inside the property received medical attention from paramedics at the scene. Witnesses, all Polish nationals caught in the inferno with only the clothes on their backs, told how the fire appeared to start in the hallway by the stairs.
Massive emergency response tackles huge fire
Six fire engines and 35 firefighters from Norbury, Mitcham, berkshire999.co.uk/where/west-norwood/" title="West Norwood" data-wpil-keyword-link="linked">West Norwood, Wimbledon, and Croydon poured water on the blaze before 6am. Two ambulances also rushed to assist. The property remains cordoned off under police guard as investigators probe the cause of the devastating fire.
