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Just wanted to let all the members about a VERY scary incident that happened on the Campsite we were staying on over the Bank holiday.

A man in a campervan had gone to bed and his van set on fire. 

Thankfully, the fire brigade came quickly and put it out.  No-one was hurt, mostly smoke damage and the van was driveble so he was able to get home.

But..the cause, I find is really worrying.  The flue that houses the pilot light for the fridge had corroded over time due to water dripping when he washed up.  It seeped down the unit and rusted away the pipe....resulting in the flame being able to get to the wood and insulation on the van walls and start a fire.  His smoke alarm did'nt go off as the flames were licking up the side of his van from the outside, the fire was coming out of the fridge vents.

This could happen to ANYOne where the fridge is next to the sink.

Please get things checked out if you can......someone else may not be as lucky!!!

Andy

Us + the kids

                     Thanx for that warning my fridge is next to the sink. Now booking it in for a service .Just to ease my mind. 

Dont panic. That is an isolated incident and most likely previously unheard of.

You could walk out of the house and get run over in the morning, but do you spend your life worrying about it ?

I am assuming if you have your van serviced every year, this shouldn't happen!

Still surprised that the smoke alarm didn't go off, even though the flames were outside, there must have been smoke coming in.  My smoke alarm goes off every time I make toast!!

The van was an M reg and the man said it wad serviced as often as it should have been.  A couple of the firemen said that they had been to couple of things like this before. The pilot light is often the cause of a fire, I suppose when you think about it.....gas and naked flames!!  Infact, the Chief Fireman came around the site the next morning armed with loads of reading stuff and alarms and the like and went to every van and camper to make people fire aware.

We find our smoke alarm doesnt go off if we cook with the window by the cooker open and the omnivent on...abit loud, but it does its job.

Andy