Family's lucky escape as fire starts in home while they're in bed

A mum says she is living in constant anxiety after a sudden fire tore through the family home and left it uninhabitable.

Louise Thorpe, 40, from Barrow-upon-Humber said she and her partner and daughter had only been in their home for seven months when the fire started last Thursday morning. Fortunately, a neighbour saw the danger and banged on the door to alert them and another hero neighbour rescued their dogs from the back garden.

She told Grimsby Live: "We were in bed; we don't even know how it started. We had a delivery of all new fencing and decking and a shed ready to start renovating the garden and something - we don't know what - set fire to all of it. It took out all of the back of the house."

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They'd only just finished decorating the interior of the home when the fire happened. It took hold very quickly and Louise said they were lucky to escape.

"It was in the living room and it was going up through the floorboards," Louise said. "Luckily for us, my neighbour had decided to work from home and he could hear the fire.

"He didn't know what it was at the time, he just could hear something. So he looked out of his back door and he saw all the flames and came and banged on the door."

Louise said her partner and daughter were affected by smoke inhalation and an ambulance was called to the scene. There is also the lasting impact from witnessing the terrifying ordeal.

"When I hear a beeping, I think it's a smoke alarm, if I smell smoke it gives me palpitations," she said. Louise said she had smoke alarms in the home but they didn't go off until Louise's partner opened the living room door to douse the flames with water.

Shocking photographs show the extensive damage to the back of the house, including smoke damage and boarded-up windows. The interior has also been damaged and furniture is completely destroyed.

Louise is hoping to raise £3,000 towards the cost of repairs and temporary accommodation. "Even if people are unable to donate, a share can go a long way," she said.

As she explains on the fundraising page, they didn't have a home insurance policy yet and "hindsight is always a wonderful thing". If you can help out, visit the GoFundMe or share it.