A man in his 60s remains in hospital with serious injuries after a fire tore through a house on Thomas Drive in Broadgreen. Neighbours described hearing a loud bang and seeing thick black smoke billowing into the sky.
Emergency Response
Emergency services were called to the two-storey property at 5.54am on Tuesday. Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service arrived six minutes later with three fire engines. Firefighters found the ground floor engulfed in flames and rescued a man from inside. He was treated by paramedics before being taken to hospital.
Neighbour Accounts
Residents living nearby reported being woken by a loud bang. One neighbour from Norville Road said: We heard a big bang about half five. There's fireworks here a lot so we assumed it was that. But when we looked out of the window, there was black smoke all coming through the roof. The whole place was on fire. Thick black smoke was coming from the roof; it looked like it was going right up towards the sky. We heard all the windows cracking with the fire, the glass shattering. It was terrible. I did shed a tear over it all.
Another neighbour noted the homeowner had recently spent money improving the property: He had just had all his windows refitted only about six months ago. Now the whole house is destroyed. It's so sad. I hope he's okay.
A third neighbour added: I didn't hear a thing, but my neighbours said they saw the smoke coming from the roof and worried it was going to spread. I just saw how bad it was this morning when I walked past and saw the house. It's just awful; it's burned right through.
Others also reported hearing a loud bang at around 5.30am but thought little of it.
Scene and Investigation
When the ECHO visited the scene, the extent of the damage was visible from the street. Much of the property appeared gutted by the blaze, with severe fire damage stretching from the ground floor through to the roof. Police officers conducted door-to-door enquiries, while forensic officers and fire investigators were also at the scene.
A Merseyside Police spokesperson said the force was contacted by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service at around 6.30am. They confirmed a man in his 60s had been taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze by 6.30am after two teams wearing breathing apparatus entered the property to tackle the fire and search for anyone trapped inside. Thomas Drive was closed between Norville Road and Queens Drive but has since reopened.
A joint investigation between Merseyside Police and Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service is now underway to establish the cause of the fire.
