A couple have spoken of their shock after a section of their property was ravaged in a catastrophic fire triggered by their artificial lawn going up in flames. Shaun Whyatt and his partner Jenn Barnet are now facing a substantial £15,000 repair bill after hot embers from a fire bin set their fake grass alight.
Fire tore through the back of their property during the early hours of 7 May following Shaun's disposal of letters in the rear garden. Security operative Shaun had previously doused the £20 fire bin with water, convinced he had extinguished the flames. However, hours afterwards embers leaked from tiny holes in the fire bin, setting their £1,000 synthetic turf ablaze in Arnold, Notts.
The blaze spread to their property and the couple were only made aware of the fire at 3am when a neighbour hammered on their door. Fortunately, the pair managed to get out, together with their two cats, but are now confronting substantial expenses to restore the back of their home.
Couple's Shock and Gratitude
Shaun, 57, said: 'Last Thursday I went out to the garden and I had several bills. I bought a new fire bin and I burnt them. I put water on it straight after and I thought no problem. We're lying in bed around 3am when I hear the neighbours knocking on the door. I went downstairs to see black smoke and flames all up the wall, we couldn't believe it. If it wasn't for our neighbours, we wouldn't be here now. I'd never met her before. I fell to my knees and I cried.'
What caused it was likely the grass. Jenn and her dad had put some artificial grass down a few years ago and that had sparked through the little hole in the bottom. The grass next door has charred a little bit but it's real, so the natural water probably helped dampen it. But ours has completely melted. It wasn't a cheap one, it was the top quality artificial grass. It had melted the back windows, which we couldn't believe. And it's left all our back rooms black. We have a lot of white furniture but it's been charred by the fire.
Uninsured and Struggling
The pair say they've been left relying on microwave dinners as they attempt to gather money to pay for the restoration work. The destruction encompassed all the rear fencing, the decking, the garden shed and every tool stored within it, plus all the back windows. The duo weren't insured for the incident as Jenn had switched her bank account and mistakenly believed she had notified her insurance provider. This resulted in two failed payments, leading to the policy being cancelled when the blaze occurred.
Shaun explained: 'It couldn't have come at a worst time for us with what Jenn is going through. I stayed here and have been trying to clean this. Every room is black so I've been trying to solve this. 18 months ago Jenn's dad passed away so it's been quite a toll on her. We were so lucky our neighbour was on it. It's reinstated my faith in humanity - we've never met them but they saved our life. We're having to cook out of a microwave at the moment. I'm trying to approach double glazing companies to try and sort them so we can get the boilers in.'
It took two and half days to clean the bathroom and then I'm going to try to do the landing. The windows on the back, you're looking around £3k. The boiler is £4k. It does want a new kitchen as well. You're probably looking at really £10-15k of damage. Ironically the actual bin that helped cause this isn't even charred.
Regret Over Artificial Grass
Jenn, 53, a trained nurse, revealed she had forked out £1,000 fitting the artificial lawn a decade ago, but now deeply regrets the decision. She said: 'I do most definitely regret getting it, I'll never ever go near fake grass ever again in my life. If it had been normal grass it would've charred and gone out because of the moisture on the surface. It wasn't a cheap one, it was the top quality grass. We thought it looked nice and it was easy. We opted for it because I've got arthritis and I can't use a lawn mower. That's changed now, I'm going to have to put myself through the pain and use a mower because there's no way we're having that again.'
The fire officer told me a few weeks ago they went out to a call for fake grass. All he did was flick his cigarette stub and it torched the whole garden. He thought it was wet and it'd go out, so it's easily done. You would never have thought it. I'm so safety conscious. Being a respiratory nurse I'm the most safety conscious person in the world.
Fire Service Response
A spokesperson for Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service said: 'Firefighters from Arnold, Carlton and Stockhill fire stations attended a fire on Thursday 7 May following a call to Cornell Drive, Arnold, at 3.08am. The fire had started in the garden which had spread to the house. Firefighters used breathing apparatus and a hose reel jet to extinguish the fire.'
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