Car fire on drive is close call for mum and sleeping baby

A mum and her baby daughter had a lucky escape after a car parked on her driveway caught fire and threatened to spread to her house.

Jenna Yates, 30, was at home in Christopher Bushell Way on the Little Burton estate in Kennington, when the blaze broke out shortly after 10.30pm on Thursday last week.

She said: “Normally I would be in bed, but I was up watching a film. I heard some bangs outside and my car was on fire.

“My daughter was sound asleep upstairs, so I had to grab her out of her cot.

“I was really worried it was going to spread to the house as well, and a friend’s car was parked up next to mine.

“We had to walk out past the fire to get out of the house.

“I called the fire brigade. It seemed like forever, but must have been about 10 minutes before they arrived.”

When fire crews arrived they found the car was well alight with flames causing damage to the guttering and soffits.

On of the crew who attended the scene said: “They heard a few pops and bangs and came out to find the vehicle on fire.

“We used two hoses and compressed air foam to put the fire out. We were there for about an hour and our actions stopped the fire from spreading to the house.”

Ms Yates was given a smoke alarm for the ground floor of her home, and told that the cause of the fire could have been an electrical fault with the car which she only bought two weeks ago.

The firefighter added: “The car was parked right next to the house, and the flames were moving up towards the gable end.

“The occupants had managed to escape before we arrived.”

Ms Yates was able to enter her home again soon afterwards.

‘My daughter was asleep upstairs, so I had to grab her out of her cot’

A mum and baby escaped from their home after a car caught fire on the driveway