Tortoise house fire stopped from reaching oil tank

Friday 31 March 2017

The quick actions of an ex-retained fire-fighter narrowly avoided a serious fire in St Brelade early this morning, after they used a garden hose to put out a fire in a tortoise house before it reached a nearby oil tank.

Its believed an electrical fault on a heat lamp used inside the tortoise house caused the fire, which then spread to large plantation of pampas grass. Sadly, the three tortoises that lived in the house did not survive.

The Fire Service initially received multiple reports of a bonfire out of control at around 02:00, but they quickly established that it was actually the tortoise house, next to the owner's home, which was on fire. 

Three fire engines went to the house, but when they arrived the fire was almost out already, thanks to an ex-retained firefighter who used a garden hose on it. 

The firefighters then used water jets to dampen and cool down the area. They also inspected the surrounding area with the help of a thermal-imaging camera and discovered that the fire had caused minor heat damage to the owner’s house, and that the heat from the flames had damaged the oil tank of the house next door.

Pic Credit: Jersey Fire and Rescue.