My worst nightmare... yard fire!

Serenity087

Serenity087

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I'll spoil the story by telling the end first... The horses were all in the fields, the kids were all out in the fields with the horses and our hay and straw supplies are saved.

There, now to the beginning.

Talking to another livery when we heard a rather loud poppy fire so we thought we'd better check. Was in the yard of the sheds next to our barns.
Then spotted the owner of all the yards daughter shouting... "there's no one here, it's out of control!"

So dialled 999... I'd litrelly just gotton our yard postcode off the post office website 20 minutes earlier for a hay order!! So was only on the phone about 30 seconds. Then waited for the trucks to turn up.

note one - please ensure your yard postcode is clearly displayed. I was the only person on the yard who knew what it was and that was by luck rather than judgement

Trucks turn up, we wave them into the yard and get asked "what's in the shed?" - No idea says the other livery, but I knew - GAS CANISTERS!!!!

note two - if you have any sheds near you - find out what's in them!

So they evacuate the yards, we herd the liveries cars into the fields and the keen eyed fireman spots that the building may be lined with abestos, so asks... yes it is!!!

note three - find out if you have asbestos nearby and where/how old!!

Eventually, three fire engines, one special chemical engine and one police car later, the yard is safe and one very red faced gentleman is about to kick the living daylights of his thoughtless employee who lit a bonfire then left it...

However, there are so many "what ifs" - what if we hadn't known about the gas, what if we hadn't known the postcode... what if he'd lit the fire an hour or two later!

The heart of the fire was smack bang in the middle of our entire hay/straw/bedding stocks. It was also dangerously close to the trailer parking and three of the feed sheds.

In the 7 minutes it took the fire brigade to turn up, the bonfire caught the shed and the yard fence.

When I take into account the minutes that were saved by knowing a few basic things, I thought I had to encourage others to make a note, especially in this weather.
 
Ohh my gosh :( that is awful thank god every one and all the horses were okay! I think the postcode of the livery yard I am at is on our contract which is written in the cubard so scary
 
Good advice! Am married to a firefighter, so we are very alert ( well he is lol) EVERYTHING is unplugged before we go to bed, the toaster isn't under the kitchen units, the skybox is unplugged, all the doors are closed, I tell you its a nightmare, but worth it , as you found out, minutes saves life and property!

Another thing he has drummed into me, if you see smoke or any indication your car has overheated, stop immediately and take your kids pet out instantly, a car will go up as fast as it takes you to take your seatbelt off!!
 
Dramatic much, the fire service sounds very organised aswell actually, must of been a close shave! Thank god no one was hurt. Big oops for that business not insuring though.
 
Big love for Surrey Fire Service who turned up in blistering heat and padded about in full suits and breathing aparatus!

Bigger love when they started removing layers though... ;)

No, seriously, they were in and getting the fire out in no time at all. Took them about two hours to pack away (men, eh!) but no complaints from me!
 
Postcode now written on Yard wall after I had to call an ambulance to another livery who had knocked himself unconscious by falling off a ladder whilst working on a lorry. At the time nobody on the yard knew the postcode!
 
piebaldsparkle said:
Postcode now written on Yard wall after I had to call an ambulance to another livery who had knocked himself unconscious by falling off a ladder whilst working on a lorry. At the time nobody on the yard knew the postcode!
Click to expand...

So is ours now... But it's also "burned" (pun not intended ;) ) onto my memory... I'll never forget it now!
 
glad no person or horse was hurt physically by the fore ( though the wallet might be hurt !)


postcode is a great idea....... but OS code even better ;).

Our yards postcode covers quite a few properties several of which are down little lanes and not all well signed... and you could miss our little turning if you blinked.
 
Me neither! Close shaves tend to have that affect.

He was fine, but was scary as he was on his back, unconscious and choking on his tongue with possibility of neck/spinal injury - Luckily me and another livery are both trained first aiders, but vital time was lost due to not knowing the postcode!
 
Jeez, scary stuff. Very glad all are ok.

See, this is one of the things I wish Ireland would change - we don't have postcodes. Addresses are a nightmare as roads have official titles (letter then numbers), but few people ever know these - they'd instead have a local name for the road. And the townlands are so small that again often only locals will know them. My friends' address, for example, is literally 'House opposite the old GAA grounds, [townland], [county].' :rolleyes:

Another friend, a brilliant young musician, lost control of his car in the early hours one morning. He was still conscious to call the ambulance and describe where he was (he was tragically near his own home so couldn't have given them a better description) but it still took a disgracefully long time for the ambulance to find him, and sadly by the time they reached him he was unconscious, died very soon after :( Can't help but wonder whether he'd have been found sooner if roads were better named and we had postcodes.

Appreciate your postcodes!
 
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