A MYSTERY motorist was hailed a hero within the yr 2000 after elevating the alarm that saved a life and prevented a fireplace from destroying a Sixteenth-century thatched cottage at Holford on the Quantocks.
Twenty-five years on, this motorist’s identification stays a thriller, however the half he performed in stopping a tragedy is obvious.
Additionally credited was a specialist gadget, created by Somerset firefighter Bryn Wilson, to deal with thatch blazes, then on trial within the county. The gadget performed an necessary function in saving nearly all of the thatched roof.
Retired nurse Liz Guttridge was asleep when the passing driver hammered on the door of Ford cottage alongside the primary A39 highway, simply after 3am on Wednesday, March 15, 2000. He had noticed flames from the roof of 1 wing of the Grade Two listed property.
Liz, then 55, whose husband Tony, then 56, was staying with their daughter in Excessive Wycombe, mentioned on the time: “I don’t know who he was however he simply shouted that the home was on fireplace and that he had referred to as for assist.
“There was no smoke in the home however once I seemed outdoors I might see flames alongside the trip beneath the kitchen.”
The couple tried to hint and thank the motorist who had disappeared when firefighters from Nether Stowey, Bridgewater and Williton arrived on the scene.
By the point the firefighters arrived, Liz had acquired the household pets – two Cavalier King Charles spaniels and a cat – out of the cottage and alerted her neighbours.
On the peak of the blaze, which took almost two hours to deliver underneath management, 4 engines and specialist home equipment from Taunton, Bridgewater and Wiveliscombe had been on website. The Somerset Pink Cross fireplace sufferer unit was additionally referred to as.
The blaze successfully gutted the single-storey wing, destroying no less than 80 per cent of the roof and about 20 per cent of a kitchen and breakfast room. Fortunately, the primary two-storey home and roof had been unaffected, aside from water injury within the sitting room.
Though the thatch was effectively alight by the point the firefighters arrived, their efforts to comprise the blaze had been helped by a pioneering piece of kit, the Brendon Pump.
The gadget was the brainchild of Wiveliscombe Station Officer Bryn Wilson, the pump resembled a high-pressure automotive jet washer and was designed to supply a high-intensity spray straight into the thatch.
Somerset Hearth Brigade spokesperson Station Officer Andy Newland mentioned it was uncommon to have the ability to save a thatched roof.
He mentioned on the time: “It isn’t unparalleled however it’s uncommon and on this occasion, the Brendon Pump undoubtedly performed a major half.”
At the moment, there was only one pump obtainable for the entire county however its effectiveness was being monitored in trials which, if profitable, would result in additional manufacturing to be provided to different brigades throughout the nation. Liz and Tony had nothing however reward for its use and the swift motion of the firefighters.
Retired RAF officer Tony Guttridge, a former member of the Queen’s Flight, was again in Somerset lower than 4 hours after the hearth broke out.
Liz mentioned: “Now we have misplaced an terrible lot as a result of we had all types of stuff within the loft area above the kitchen.
“My husband’s uniforms which had nice sentimental worth, are just about ruined.
“But it surely might have been a lot worse. Nobody was harm and we are able to nonetheless reside in the primary a part of the home.”
The couple moved from Oxfordshire 18 months beforehand however mentioned the response from villagers to their plight was overwhelming.
Liz added: “Holford is a improbable group and everybody has been marvellous – we’ve had a stream of individuals providing us meals and serving to to clear up.”
The fireplace was believed to have been attributable to {an electrical} fault.
