Family of eight left temporarily homeless after fire rips through home

Mum-of-six Zoe Croughton found her and her family without a roof over their heads after their house on St Elphin’s Close in Howley was destroyed by an electrical fire which was started by a faulty fridge.

The 36-year-old described the events that led up to the house fire, which started in the kitchen of her Torus-owned rental property.

“It happened on Wednesday, October 9, at around 4.10pm - we were all inside the house,” she explained.

“We got in from the school run at 3.45pm and we were getting the kids changed. I came downstairs and I could smell burning, I initially thought it was the oven.

“My husband Paul opened the back door and noticed there were cushions on top of the fridge freezer near to the back door, he noticed they were on fire and threw them outside.

“He shouted and told us all to leave the house.”

The fire occurred at their home on St Elphin's Close (Image: Supplied) Once Zoe, Paul and their six children had evacuated the property they called Cheshire Fire Service to report the fire and fire crews arrived soon after.

“The fire spread through the kitchen and there was smoke damage all throughout. We have been told it will take six months for repairs.”

Devastating pictures provided by the Belong Warrington healthcare assistant showed the harrowing extent of the damage.

With rooms inside the house and the back door barely recognisable in the hours after the fire took place.

A fire report issued by Cheshire Fire Service confirmed the cause of the blaze to be due to 'a fault in equipment or appliance' - specifically a 'chest fridge freezer' - which started in the kitchen.

In the meantime, the couple and their six children, their youngest aged five and eldest aged 15, have been generously put up in their friends two-bedroom home.

And a supportive friend Lisa Donlan has started a funding page to help support the family during the difficult time.

It will take six months for repairs to take place (Image: Supplied) Aiming to raise £1,000, so far more than £800 worth of donations has attracted the page.

Meanwhile, Zoe has been in constant contact with Torus to arrange temporary housing while repair works take place on her home.

She has now been offered and accepted a three-bedroom property as temporary housing.

Housing services director at Torus, Jan Calland, said: “We are really pleased to have been able to help Miss Croughton find a home so quickly following the fire and she is delighted we have been able to give her a three-bedroom house.

“It has been a distressing time for her family so we are also going to be providing and installing new carpets and blinds in the home to help them settle in and we will be staying in close contact to provide any further help needed.”

Addressing the action Torus has taken since the house fire, Zoe added: “I can't fault them, now the housing officer is trying to rush things for us to get the keys and is also keeping me updated on fire repairs on our home.”

But while the family are soon to have a roof over their heads, they still face the reality of spending Christmas away from their cherished home with many of their personal belongings perished and lost due to the house fire.

To ease the financial strain they may face in coming months, the Go Fund Me Page has been set up to support them in their hour of need.

If you would like to donate to the page, visit the link here.