Fire warning after play equipment blaze

FIREFIGHTERS are warning people not to store play equipment or rubbish close to their property this Christmas, after a garden fire in Rawmarsh.

A woman in her 20s and her baby daughter escaped the blaze unharmed on Thursday afternoon but the fire spread throughout much of their living room.

The rest of the house on Hawke Close was smoke-logged.

The fire started accidentally at around 1.30pm after a tea towel left on the cooker caught light. The occupant threw the blazing cloth outside where it set light to a children's bouncy castle and wendy house .

Watch manager Wayne Harland said: "We would urge people to ensure they store toys, garden furniture and wheelie bins well away from their property this Christmas. It doesn't take much for these items to catch fire and, if they are stored next to a house, the fire can easily spread to threaten lives."