Fundraiser for family who lost everything in fire
Friends and neighbours of a young family who lost everything in a devastating caravan fire are pulling together to help get them back on their feet.
Crews in four fire engines were called to Chegworth Road, Harrietsham, near Maidstone, just after 11.30pm last Wednesday and used hose reel jets to put out the blaze. A baby, understood to be around 11 months old, and two children, aged 10 and 11, were among the five people who were treated at the scene. They were all then taken to William Harvey Hospital in Ashford having suffered burns and smoke inhalation. Neighbour Naomi Brown has since set up a GoFundMe page which has already raised hundreds of pounds for those affected.
“They’re a lovely family and we always say hello so it’s really sad to see what’s happened and what they must be going through,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of donations of items already, like clothes and toys for the kids and those little bits and bobs are really helpful.
“But we’re also trying to raise as much money as we can to maybe get them a new home, because they’ve not got anything left at all.
“Their car and the kids’ bikes were completely destroyed. “Hopefully we can all pull together and make sure they have somewhere to go when they get out of hospital - somewhere to keep their kids safe and actually spend some time recovering from this traumatic ordeal.”
The cause of the fire is not yet known, but is believed to be accidental.
To donate via the GoFundMe page, visit tinyurl.com/caravanfireappeal.
‘We’re trying to raise as much money as we can because they’ve not got anything left at all’