By Mitchell Clarke
A working smoke alarm and a good neighbour have been credited as saving the life of an unconscious Pakenham woman, who was pulled by firefighters from her smoke-filled house.
Emergency services were called to the property in Pakenham north just after 5pm on Wednesday 16 December following reports a smoke alarm was going off.
A quick thinking neighbour noticed smoke billowing from the property and called triple zero. Within six minutes, four firefighters from the Pakenham Fire Station (FS93) were breaking down the doors of the locked unit.
The hero firefighters quickly noticed a fire on the stove had caused the house to fill with smoke.
Pakenham FRV senior station officer Ricky Read said crews immediately conducted a primary search of the property.
“While most people think our first priority is to put the fire out, it’s actually to search for anyone that could be inside the house,” he explained.
An adult female was found unconscious and unresponsive in a bedroom which had become filled with smoke.
“We couldn’t wake her, so we carried her out of the house and into clean fresh air where we immediately commenced first aid. She was unconscious and remained so throughout the rescue,” Mr Read added.
As crews provided first aid and oxygen therapy while waiting for paramedics, remaining firefighters, who were joined by volunteers from Pakenham, Toomuc and Nar Nar Goon CFA, were able to quickly extinguish the blaze on the fire stove.
It’s believed unattended cooking caused the fire, after the woman reportedly suffered a medical episode.
The damage was limited to just the stove and rangehood, but the house did sustain significant smoke damage.
Mr Read said if firefighters hadn’t arrived when they did, the situation could’ve turned tragic very quickly.
“It absolutely could have been fatal. Another five minutes and the fire would’ve destroyed the house,” he said.
“The house was heavily smoke logged, the fire was developing and the woman was breathing in toxic smoke. Any longer and it could have been a completely different story.”
Mr Read said the incident highlighted the importance of working smoke alarms.
“Even though it didn’t wake the woman up, it alerted a neighbour who acted on the smoke alarm which allowed us to get there very quickly,” he explained.
“That early intervention meant the fire was knocked down quickly. We’ve effectively saved the woman, the house and the contents and it’s all because of a working smoke alarm and a neighbour not hesitating to call triple zero.
“That neighbour probably doesn’t realise it, but they’ve potentially saved a life.”
