Man saved by cats from burning home

Jane Candlish
Aberdeen Press and Journal

NORTH ERRADALE, Scotland — A man escaped from his burning house in the middle of the night only because his cats woke him.

The blaze broke out at a bungalow at North Erradale, north of Gairloch, at 1.46am yesterday.

The householder is understood to have been asleep at the time.

After being wakened by his two pets, he ran out of the house and alerted emergency services.

Luckily the man and his cats were unhurt. The 32-year-old was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene.

The house was destroyed. Yesterday Northern Constabulary said they were investigating the cause of the blaze, however they added it was thought there were no suspicious circumstances.

Crews from Gairloch and Aultbea attended but were hampered by a lack of water and a water bowser from Inverness was sent to help out. Investigations are now under way into the cause of the blaze.

A spokeswoman for Highlands and Islands Fire and Rescue Service (HIFRS) said the blaze was well-developed when crews arrived.

She said that the house was destroyed, adding that the 13 firefighters in attendance used a jet and two sets of breathing apparatus to fight the flames.

Dornoch station manager Ricky Dibble said: "Our biggest problem was that we had difficulty in getting water because of the location. Until the water bowser got there, we were shuttling the pumps back and forth."

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