A large emergency response attended an incident in Ramsgate this afternoon (January 15).
Ten fire engines were in King Street and Plains of Waterloo as firefighters tackled a blaze in the upper floors of tower block Kennedy House.
Police and ambulance crews were also at the scene. Residents were evacuated but have now been allowed back into their homes.
A Kent Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: “Ten fire engines and a height vehicle attended and crews, wearing breathing apparatus, used main jets to extinguish the flames, which were contained to the bathroom.
“Residents who were evacuated have now been able to return to their homes.
“One person was passed into the care of SECAmb paramedics and the HART team.
“The cause is not yet known.”
Southern Water also notified residents in the area who experienced low water pressure that: “This is due to the local Fire Service using a number of hydrants to tackle a serious blaze.
“When the water comes back on you may notice some minor discoloration or low pressure, this is completely normal and is only temporary.”
A Kent Police spokesperson said: “Kent Police was called at around 4.55pm to reports of a fire in Newcastle Hill, Ramsgate.
“Officers attended and closed roads in the surrounding area while Kent Fire and Rescue Service extinguished the flames.”
Thanet council said Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS) confirmed all the fire alarm systems worked as they should have after some concerns were raised that the communal alarm was set off manually.
Smoke from the fire activated the alarm inside the affected property and the fire door prevented smoke from entering the communal area.
To provide additional warning that an evacuation was in progress, the Waking Watch manually activated the communal alarm.
Cllr Helen Whitehead, Cabinet Member for Housing said: “Even a small contained fire can be a frightening experience, and I would like to thank the residents at Kennedy House for their calm response to the evacuation.
“Due to all fire safety systems working correctly, as well as the additional notification from the Waking Watch, everyone was successfully evacuated and the incident quickly dealt with by KFRS.
“Many thanks to residents for observing the evacuation procedure, and to the Waking Watch and council officers whose response was comprehensive and immediate.”
Hope everyone is OK!
Everyone was ok, the fire was in one of the flats on my floor lol, hallway was pretty smokey, but everyone is fine!
i hope they are all safe = surely they cant blame Jimmy Godden this time ?
HaHaHaHaHaHa!
Just a blessing it’s not in the area supplied(ornot) by South Eastern Water! Even big bottles of water cant compete with a mains supply.
The ongoing dangers inherent in these tower blocks, the cladding, the scaffolding webbing, the possibility of not enough water to fight a fire suggests demolition and rehousing the leaseholders and renters. It has been fraught with chronic problems, that may not improve.
Education of residents would be more pragmatic.
Lakanal – tenants faulty tv
Grenfell- wiring associated with tenants fridge freezer
TDC had a fire in a manston high rise, as a result of a tenant taking their motorbike into their flat to work on. This was some years back.
Many domestic fires a result of cooking, smoking and defective/unsafe appliances (cheap Chinese chargers, substandard products) etc.
When someone crashes their car and hurts someone it’s very rrely seen as being the vehicles fault. Why is using a building badly the buildings fault?
Because if the outside is clad in combustible insulation, cale trunking cuts through fire regarding walls without being sealed properly ….
“retarding”
In which case all those involved in the project should be prosecuted, the final responsibility is with the property owner, but amazingly no one in councils ever gets held to account and as a result it happens again.
However that doesn’t deal with the original cause of the fires? To put it another way a driver speeds and loses control, crashes, there’s a resulting fire that kills the occupnt of the vehicle they collided with. Is the fire in this instance the fault of the vehicle?
By all means look at the building ,anagement but there lso needs to be consideration of the behaviours of those living in it.