Doorcam footage captures the moment a family ran for their lives as a wildfire engulfed their home in Stourbridge. Rose-Anne Vinten is seen sprinting through the garden just seconds before it catches fire, after her nine-year-old daughter spotted smoke while she was in the living room with the windows shut.
Family Loses Everything in Blaze
With husband Richard at work, the family—including children Roman, 11, and Robyn, 9—fled the property, which they had moved into only five months ago. They have "lost everything," according to reports. Around 30 homes were destroyed and dozens more damaged, with scenes described as being like a war movie.
A friend helped the family find a hotel where they stayed while waiting to hear from their insurance. Mrs Vinten told ITV: "It was really scary. I knew at the same time I needed to be brave for my kids, because my daughter was really worried."
Mother's Brave Escape
She added: "When I went over to next door and saw them just standing there at the window, looking and they could see that their house was on fire, so I had to just hold it all in. I couldn't cry or anything."
Richard, who was out at the time, saw images of nearby houses on social media and didn't know the extent of the damage until he returned. "It's heartbreaking, we'd only been there for five months. It's our forever home and it's gone," he said.
Fire Spread from Park
The dad told the Worcester News: "We knew the damage would be bad, but it was so surreal yesterday that the reality didn't really hit us. I was doomscrolling all night and when we saw a photo of our house, it was just devastating. It's been completely gutted. We've lost everything."
He added: "We only moved into the property five months ago and it was our forever home. There are sentimental things that we've lost, which is really sad, but we keep thinking it's only bricks and mortar. The important thing is that we are all safe. I'm so grateful to my wife for saving our children."
The fire began in a popular children's park nearby before flames spread across grassland and tore through neighbouring homes. Six properties were devastated and around 50 residents had to be evacuated. Paramedics treated 54 patients, including 19 taken to hospital, as a result of wildfires across the West Midlands, the region's ambulance service said.
The prime minister, on a visit to Stourbridge, described the country as a "tinderbox right now," adding that this weekend could be a really difficult one. A temporary ban on the sale of disposable barbecues has been issued by the government.
