Driver flees car moments before it goes up in flames
A DRIVER leapt from his burning car shortly before it was engulfed in flames after being alerted to the blaze by a passer-by.
The flames rapidly spread to another vehicle parked in Hampden Street, Normanton, then engulfed a garden shed and badly damaged a conservatory.
The two cars – a BMW X1 and a Nissan Juke – were completely burnt out while others parked across the road, including a taxi, were damaged by heat from the blaze, which happened yesterday lunchtime. There were no reports of injuries.
The driver of the BMW was alerted to the fire beneath his car by a quick-thinking pedestrian who noticed the flames emerging from it.
The BMW was owned by Pavel Pacaj, who had only had the vehicle for four months. Family member Marek Pacaj said: “He (Pavel) was coming home from getting the car serviced and there was a fire underneath the car, which he didn’t realise.
“Someone saw it, ran up to him and said the car is on fire, and so he got out. If no one told him, he would have still been in the car.”
Pavel said he had taken the car to a garage after noticing the service light was on. He said he had had no issues with the car up until then.
The flames spread from the BMW to the Nissan Juke and a nearby garden, which has been significantly damaged. The road was closed off while the fire service dealt with the incident.
Danny Hadley, who lives opposite the damaged property, said: “I was asleep at the time and my partner said ‘there’s something going on.’ She went out and called the fire brigade. I heard people shouting.”
Tasha Smith, Danny’s partner, said: “I just thought ‘what on earth is going on?’ I even came outside. We were told to get out of the house, then there was a massive bang and the fire spread all up onto the bushes.
“It’s burned my bins. It’s just lucky that it was not on my side, it would have gone straight into the house. I thought something was burning in my house at first. It was quite scary.”
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue tweeted: “We have three fire crews dealing with a vehicle and property #fire on Hampden Street in #Normanton. The fire is now out and crews are damping down”. According to the tweet, crews from Derby’s Nottingham Road and Ascot Drive fire stations attended, together with one from Long Eaton.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue confirmed that three fire crews attended the scene after a call at 12.26pm.