Romantic proposal that went up in flames

WHEN he laid out hundreds of tea lights in his flat, it seemed the perfect scene for a romantic proposal.

But a romeo’s plans to pop the question quickly went up in smoke after his flat was engulfed in flames.

Fire crews were called to the first-floor property in Sheffield at 8.30pm on Monday after reports of a blaze caused by the tea lights. And investigators soon discovered that the inferno began as a result of a marriage proposal that went disastrously wrong.

The unnamed man was preparing to pop the question, having blown up some balloons, got the wine glasses at the ready – and lit hundreds of tea lights.

He had gone out momentarily to collect his girlfriend for the big moment but when he returned the flat was engulfed in flames.

South Yorkshire Fire Service said in a Facebook post: ‘Firefighters found hundreds reds of burnt-out tea lights.’

It added: ‘ After going round the corner to collect his fianceeto-be, anceemantic ready for the romantic moment, he came back to find the flat on fire e and three fire engines s on the way.

‘ Fortunately this was s dealt with quickly by y our crews and nobody was injured. The best news? She still said YES!’ The fire fir service warned that the blaze could co have had graver consequences sequenc and urged others to be careful ca when lighting candles. It said: ‘Extinguish them properly when you’ve y done, don’t put them near flammable items, like curtains [and] don’t leave hundreds of tea lights unattended.’

A shopkeeper who works below the flat said the man ended up proposing outside the property instead. Talking about the blaze, he said: ‘When he came back there was a blaze.

‘Then he proposed outside during the fire. He didn’t get on his knees but she gave him a kiss. He had to make her happy after all that somehow.’ The newly engaged couple stayed at a friend’s house after the fire, the shopkeeper said.

He added: ‘I was worried because I got messages from the locals saying, “Your shop’s on fire”.

‘We’ve got no damage, just a bit of damp on the ceiling. Just the living room upstairs was damaged. It’s all ash, the walls are fully smoked out.’