A lady who almost died in a house fire is warning others of the dangers of chip pans.
Rachel Taylor, 27, received fire survival guidance before being rescued by firefighters and admitted to hospital following the blaze in her home in Longfellow Street, Houghton.
The fire happened at approximately 11pm on Sunday 13 June after Rachel had put the chip pan on to cook some chips. She then went into the living room to sit down. The next thing Rachel became aware of was being woken by the sound of glass breaking on her cooker hob and to the noise of her smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector.
Discovering the chip pan and kitchen were on fire Rachel rang 999. She was put through to Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service's Control Room where a Firefighter Control talked Rachel through what to do until the fire crews arrived.
Rachel said: "I was terrified. I remember my eyes were stinging and my lungs felt like they were burning. I could not see a thing as the electricity wasn't working either, there was thick black smoke and I was disorientated. I thought I was going to die.
"You think you know what you would do if this ever happened to you but when it hits you, you just cannot think. The operator told me to keep low and to try to get to a window. But it was really difficult in the dark. I was choking and being sick. When I did reach the window I managed to open it so I could breathe better. Then I saw the firefighters who rescued me. I cannot thank them enough for what they've done."
Rachel was treated at the scene and given oxygen by the firefighters before being taken to hospital by the ambulance service suffering from smoke inhalation. She was kept in overnight.
The kitchen was badly damaged by the fire and the rest of the property has smoke damage.
Rachel is now encouraging others to have a working smoke alarm and to ditch their chip pan. Rachel said: "I will never use a chip pan again nor cook late at night again. My dad has one and I've told him to get rid of it and I would encourage anyone else who has one to do so too. They are dangerous. Luckily we already had a working smoke alarm and if you haven't got one I would suggest you get one fitted. I would not want anyone to go through what I went through. I was very lucky to survive."
Firefighter Control Carol Betteridge from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service's Control Room took Rachel's call. She said: "Rachel was very disorientated. I was trying to calm her down and give her advice on what to do until the crews arrived. I am just pleased that we were able to rescue her and I was able to help her as that is what we are trained to do."
Group Manager Kevin Gardner, Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said: "There is no doubt Rachel is very lucky to be alive. She acted very bravely and we would like to endorse her safety messages. Smoke alarms can be the difference between life and death giving people an early warning of a fire and vital minutes to escape. Chip pans can be incredibly dangerous. We would advise anyone who has one to get rid of it or to replace it with a deep fat fryer or use oven chips. We would advise people to never leave food unattended."
A fire appliance from Sunderland South Community Fire Station in Rainton Bridge and two fire appliances from Sunderland Central Community Fire Station in Farringdon attended the incident.
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