Hucknall family left to start again from scratch after fire destroys their home

But the blaze, on Charles Street, destroyed their house and everything in it, leaving the family having to start again from scratch.

Three fire engines, five ambulances and police attended the scene of the incident in the early evening of Thursday, February 2.

The blaze started when the family’s tumble dryer, which was in the utility room under stairs, caught fire.

Caoimhe McLaughlin, her partner Brandon Booth and their two sons Noah and Junior, aged three and one, are now living in hotels, or with Brandon’s mum while the insurance company sorts out a home for them to live in temporarily until their house is able to be lived in again.

But such was the damage caused by the fire, Caomihe says it could be a year before they can move back to their old home again.

She said: “We were at home and we heard this big bang.

“At first, I thought it was my partner in opening the fridge because our fridge door used to bang on the window when it opened.

“But it wasn’t that and it wasn’t my oldest son banging his juice bottle on the table either like he often does.

“So my next thought was to check the tumble dryer and there was this funny smell coming from it which left us feeling dizzy and light-headed, so we knew something wasn’t right.

“We went back in and opened the dryer door and thick black smoke came pouring out everywhere.

“As soon as I saw the smoke, I grabbed my kids and got out of the house as quickly as possible and called 999.”

The emergency services came quickly and put out the blaze, but not before the house had been extensively damaged.

Caoimhe said: “Everything’s been destroyed, we can’t go back there for at least a year.

“Everything’s gone, the kids clothes, their toys, the lot, the kids were in their pyjamas when we got out of the house and that was it.

“We need to stay in Hucknall and I need wherever we end up to be close to my eldest son’s school as I don’t drive.”

The community has rallied around to support the family with donations of clothes and toys for the children after Caomihe posted on Facebook thanking the emergency services for coming to their aid so quickly.

Any other support people can give them family would also be very gratefully received.

Caoimhe said: “It’s been awful but at least we all got out alive and unharmed, that’s the main thing.

“I’m happy it didn’t happen when we were in bed asleep at night because we wouldn’t be here now if it did.”