Haunted by blaze in his flat
THE dad whose faulty fridge apparently sparked the inferno has told friends he is haunted by what happened.
It’s been claimed that father-of-one Behailu Kebede raised the alarm with neighbours after the blaze engulfed his one-bed flat.
He later watched in horror as the tower went up in flames.
Behailu, 44, was interviewed by police on Wednesday and is now staying with friends.
A friend said: “He is haunted by what happened. He’s just thankful he managed to alert his neighbours.
“Behailu contacted the police and told them everything. He is very shocked. He told me he saw smoke and straight away started knocking on the doors of his neighbours.”
Behailu is originally from Ethiopia and has a young son, but is understood to have lived alone.
Friend Eshete Meried added: “Behailu raised the alarm. That is what I am hearing. He is fine but not in a position to talk about anything right now.”
Neighbour Maryann Adam, 41, who is pregnant, said Behailu knocked on her door and said his flat was on fire.
She said: “It was exactly 12.50am because I was sleeping and it woke me. If he had not knocked, we would be dead.
“The fire was small in the kitchen. I could see it because the flat door was open.
“There was no alarm at all, nothing. He knocked number 15 too, and the fourth floor.
“I know number 15 got out, because I saw them behind us. Me and my brother ran out and saw that the fire was already spreading. We could see it at the windows.
“We asked him [Behailu]. He said it started 10 minutes ago. It was very small.”
Another neighbour, Aalya Moses, also praised Behailu for saving her. She said: “There was no alarm, no sprinkler, just my neighbour who told everyone on my floor and the surrounding floors.”