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Following an emergency call-out, volunteers Jackie Spurgeon and Dan Foxler from the Red Cross’ fire and emergency support service (FESS) raced to the scene in Carlton, Nottinghamshire. By the time they arrived, the house had been completely gutted by the flames.
Traumatic incident
Looking back on his family’s lucky escape, Ricky recalled: “The kids woke us up and the bedroom ceiling was already full of smoke. We jumped up straight away and rushed everyone out of the house. Once we got outside, the Red Cross volunteers were among the first to arrive and they stayed with us right until the end. I would have cracked up without them.”
He added: “The volunteers were fantastic. I was in shock – we weren’t insured and have lost everything – and they really calmed me down. They just kept saying encouraging things and were persistently on the phone trying to get us some accommodation for the night.”
The traumatic incident was especially frightening for the young children, who also lost all their favourite possessions and toys in the blaze. But again, Jackie and Dan made sure that the youngsters didn’t have too much opportunity to dwell on what had just happened.
‘Brilliant’ volunteers
Ricky remembered: “Jackie and Dan were brilliant with the kids. They made them feel safe and played lots of games with them to take their minds off things.”
Now based in temporary accommodation, the family are slowly putting their lives back together again – reassured that the Red Cross is still looking out for them.
Ricky said: “The volunteers have kept in touch since the fire, just to see how we are getting on. And if there is anything that needs to be done in the future, I have no doubt that the Red Cross will be there for us.”
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