nightmares and fear about fires

[LilacBump]

DD has been telling me for a few weeks now that she's scared of there being a fire in the house. first it was just a general concern that she had and i tried to explain she was safe and what to do in case of a fire and showing her the smoke alarms etc. then she woke up with nightmares about fires. i banned her from watching fireman sam when it was on cbeebies a while ago as it made things worse. last weekend she said a few times that she was "fed up of thinking". when i questioned what she meant she said she was fed up of thinking and dreaming about fires. she's so genuinely upset about it all and i feel a bit helpless. how can i make her feel safe and stop her worrying about it?

she's nearly 5 btw

My dd who is 5 had a similar fear of fires after watching a program about volcanos. I told her all the positive things about fire and how useful fire is (cooking, heating, light and how some seeds won't grow unless they have been burnt first etc.)
I also took her to the local fire station to look at the engines (through the windows)and we talked about how 'clever' firemen were and how they had a very important job saving people when fires get out of control. It is good for children to have a respect for fire but is important to keep it in perspective. I would allow her to watch fireman sam but watch it with her Point out how some people are stupid and create fires (usually Norman Price !) and how quickly Sam and the gang save the day.
My daughter is wary of fire now but no longer terrified.

My DD (who is now 8) had a fear of fires for a while and we did all the same things, reassuring her about the low chance of there being a fire, checking fire alarms, talking through what to do if there was one etc. She eventually settled down after a few weeks but at some time later, she had a fear of a burglar breaking into the house and she's been afraid of being stolen by a 'bad person'.

Children are very sensitive to what they see and hear and my advice is to take it seriously, be calm and reassure them and eventually they grow out of it - until the next time

Good luck.

thank you for your replies and good advice :)