Pet dog alerts family to house blaze

A FAMILY pet helped minimise damage to an Ipswich home after alerting the owner to a blaze in the loft.

A FAMILY pet helped minimise damage to an Ipswich home after alerting the owner to a blaze in the loft.

Jill Wright, 52, today told how her pet dog Milly started acting strangely at around 1pm on Saturday while Mrs Wright sat in her back garden enjoying the sun.

“Our two dogs sat down quietly with me but Milly just kept running back into the house for a few minutes at a time which is unusual for her,” Mrs Wright, of Colchester Road, said.

“I wondered what was the matter and when I glanced up I saw smoke coming from the chimney pot

“Milly made me aware there was something wrong.”

Mrs Wright checked upstairs in her home and when she heard crackling and smelled burning coming from the loft she dialled 999.

The blaze in the semi-detached house saw five fire crews fighting the flames at its height and the road had to be closed while the fire was brought under control.

Smoke could be seen coming through the roof tiles of the property and crews used the turntable ladder from Bury St Edmunds to access the upper parts of the building.

Mrs Wright said the fire began in an electrical box in the loft and caused thousands of pounds damage.

The entire roof needs to be replaced, as well as the ceilings in the upstairs rooms.

Mrs Wright said: “We are having to stay in the conservatory and other rooms outside the main building at the moment because the ceilings are unstable.”

Mrs Wright's husband Terry, and daughter Nicola, were out of the house at the time of the blaze and nobody was injured.

“The main thing is nobody was hurt,” Mrs Wright said.