Swansea house fire caused by overheated hairdryer

At 12:30pm on Thursday, 13th January 2022, Joint Fire Control received a call of a property fire in Pentregethin Road, Ravenhill, Swansea.

Crews from Port Talbot, Gorseinon and Morriston were mobilised to the incident.

The fire was located in the first-floor bedroom, of the two-storey house, and extinguished by firefighters using four breathing apparatus, two hose reel jets and two thermal imaging cameras.

All persons within the property were accounted for.

The Fire Service ventilated the property and left the incident at 01:44pm.

The fire is believed to have been started by an overheated hairdryer that was left on a pile of clothing.

Station Manager Will Bowen, Home Fire Safety Manager for Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said “Hairdryers are used, every day, in many households, so it’s very important to check them now and then to make sure that they remain safe to use.

You should make sure that the electrical cable is not twisted and that there are no exposed wires at the plug, or where they enter the hairdryer and check that the air intake at the rear of the dryer is clear of dust and hair.

After you’ve used a hairdryer, it will stay hot for some time afterwards, so you should place it on a non-flammable surface and away from any other combustible items, such as towels, clothes and curtains etc.

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service also recommend that all electrical items be registered, so that the owners can be notified of any issues or recalls by the manufacturer. The Register My Appliance website allows you to register any device or appliance from lots of manufacturers, even if you have bought it second hand https://www.registermyappliance.org.uk/”