My house caught fire today

[KissingintheDark]

I'm just feeling numb and lost. The sun on a mirror caused the kitchen to catch alight. It happened so fast. The flames ran up the curtain...I'm alone so no one else to confide in how shocked I feel The fireman put it out but the kitchen is bad and the whole house smells of burnt plastic...I don't know where to start. I'm not insured.

Oh my gosh, you must be in complete shock. Thank goodness it was put out.

Did they say it was structurally safe for you to stay there?

How scary, glad you are ok.

how come you don’t have insurance? If renting you need it as part of the contract, same as a mortgage?

I so sorry this happened to you. I suppose all you can do is try and repair what you can afford over a period of time.
Are you in rented accommodation?
What has your landlord said?
I know you can't get a mortgage without insurance, so I assume rented. Usually landlords have to insure their properties.

I’m so, so sorry. That’s awful. I’ve heard of that happening from time to time. Must have been very frightening. Lucky it didn’t spread further especially in this heat.

Oh Op you have my full sympathy - many years ago now my flat was badly damaged by an electrical fire and the smell afterwards was terrible. Are your belongings mainly ok? Smoke damage ruined many of my possessions even though the fire hadn’t harmed them. You’re safe, that’s the main thing but it’s shit nonetheless.

How scary OP, I would be shaken by that too. open up all the windows to air things out. Other than the curtains was anything destroyed?

Look into home insurance options.

Do you definitely not have insurance? I would double check, if you have a mortgage you might have taken out insurance then for example...

As long as you are OK, that's the main thing.
First things first. Is the kitchen damaged? Units? Worktops? If you are a tenant that is covered by Landlords insurance. It won't cover your stuff but would cover the kitchen damage.
If you own /have a mortgage then you need to have a really good look at what is damaged. Post back and there will be some ideas

Our house caught fire many years ago when I was about 9 years old. My mum had a magnifying mirror and that set fire to the bedroom curtains. It was a horrible experience and took a long time to process and recover from . Can you stay with anyone for a couple of days while you recover from the initial shock? Sending huge hugs xx

what time this happen today, OP?
What things can you salvage & what needs to be replaced?

This happened to a friend years ago and she said it was terrifying. In her case a glass paperweight focussed sunlight to a point and set the curtains alight.
Hope you manage to get sorted soon

I’m so sorry to hear this OP. I’m glad the firemen managed to arrest the fire as I do know of someone who’s house burned to the ground from a mirror fire

Are you sure you aren't insured? Check with your bank accounts, sometimes they come with home insurance.

If you are anywhere near County Durham I'm happy to give you a free house clean op. .
*self employed clewner with insurance.
Feel free to message me op.

So sorry this has happened to you. Xx

I'm in rented, the kitchen cupboards fronts melted off and the air vent. The speed of the first was shocking. I tried to put it out because the flames were only about 6in high but the flames shot up to the ceiling in a blink and black smoke belched out. The firemen put all the burnt stuff in the garden. The kitchen is black up one wall but the heat must have been so intense. Emergency electron was sent out to fix some temp lights. It happened about 4pm while I was in the kitchen. Thankyou so much for the kind offer @gardenisblooming I'm in Dorset.

Have you notified your landlord? Their insurance should cover damage to the kitchen units and other parts of the kitchen itself, although I completely understand that's not much consolation for your damaged belongings.

Yes they know there's been a fire. I'll have to tackle all that side of things later today. I'm still trying to processes it all really. Thanks everyone for making me not feel so alone and all the advice.

How awful
sending huge hugs

Oh, op…

You must look on the good side which is that you are here telling us, you are fine, some of your stuff is damaged but that’s okay, it can be replaced.

Is there anything gone that you need immediately? Charity shops? Can you borrow?

As you said it was the kitchen, did the firemen tell you that you must throw away anything in a jam jar that has been opened, anything in paper or plastic bags eg flour and pasta, stuff like that? They contain chemicals from the fire (or something like that).

It wouldn't be your insurance anyway if it isn't your fault. Your insurance would be for your belongings. The owner must make a claim to her/his insurer for property damage regardless. They will investigate and would subrogate to your insurer if you had one if you appeared liable. They could pursue a claim against you if there was negligence. On the face of it I'd say there wasn't.
However, your landlord may be unhappy with paying the deductible, aka the uninsured amount. That's not your responsibility either.

It must've been terribly scary. I'm glad you are otherwise ok. Do you have a fire extinguisher? If not, please buy one. No home/kitchen should be without.

Do you have contents insurance? Im
in Ireland and here contents insurance tends to cover liability to landlord, not sure if fire is covered but worth a look if you have a policy.

Oh I’m so sorry. Hope you’re ok.

I set fire to my utility room a few years ago. I left a candle burning on top of the fridge freezer and closed the door. One of our cats pees in there so my thinking was to help with the smell.

I was sitting at the kitchen table with headphones on as I was doing a Health & Safety course for work!

Didn’t hear the crackling or see the smoke for ages.
I managed to put it out myself but it was so scary. The glass in the candle holder had cracked and it had burnt through the top of the FF.

What a mess, ruined FF, smoke all through the house and black sooty walls in the utility room.
I had to Hoover the walls and cupboards inside and out to get the soot off.

I’m not allowed candles in the house now.