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Council 'sorry' over fire fiasco
COUNCIL officials have apologised for putting the survivors of a house blaze into emergency accommodation without working smoke alarms.
Charmaine Partlett, 25, and her four children aged between two and nine, were left homeless after a fire ripped through their three-storey home in Lyndworth Mews, Headington, on Sunday.
They were only rescued after hearing the smoke alarm and being able to call firefighters.
Oxford City Council placed the family - who lost all their possessions in the blaze - in a flat in Rectory Road, East Oxford.
But they were horrified to discover that neither of the two smoke alarms were working.
The council has apologised to the family and moved them to a hotel until suitable accommodation can be found.
Miss Partlett said: "I can't take my kids back somewhere without a smoke alarm. It's too dangerous.
"My family's life was saved by the working smoke alarms. I could barely sleep knowing there were no smoke alarms in the council's flat.
"The council should take a long hard look at some of its landlords and carry out some proper safety checks."
Miss Partlett was rescued from the blaze in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Son Travis, seven, and daughters Mimi, three, and Skye, two, were also saved by fire crews.
Eldest daughter Rhiannon, nine, was staying at a friend's house during the night of the fire.
Fire service station manager David Heycock said firefighters offered to fit smoke alarms in the flat, but the family had already been moved to a hotel.
He added: "The council has been presented with a very large family at the very last minute.
"But smoke alarms saved their life and it is indefensible."
Last night council spokesman Chris Lee said the family was rehoused in an emergency and the flat was not checked.
But smoke detectors were fitted when the issue was raised on Monday.
Mr Lee said: "The fact that the smoke detector was not working is unfortunate, particularly given the circumstances.
"We apologise if we caused the family any additional stress as a result.
"However, we did respond promptly to their emergency by providing suitable accommodation for overnight use."
He added the council's policy was to only place families in homes with smoke alarms and usually officers check homes first to ensure they have working safety devices.
He said a reputable landlord had been used, but because the family needed housing so quickly there was no time to check the smoke alarms were working.
The council said it was keeping its fire safety policy under constant review.
6:50am Thursday 15th May 2008
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CommentPosted by: Lemur, Oxford on 8:46am Thu 15 May 08
Worth mentioning that it isn't legally the landlords responsibility to provide fire alarms. They do have to provide a gas safety certificate, but if this lady wanted fire alarms, she could have got them from a hardware shop very cheaply, or got thefire service to install them free of charge.
This would probably have been quicker for her than phoning up the local news and bleating to the papers about the lack of facilities....
What a waste of tax payers money to pay for her and her very large family to be put in a HOTEL! makes me wonder why i pay my rent, I might just as well burn the place down get the council to put in me in a hotel!
then I will get a council house - sorted!
Worth mentioning that it isn't legally the landlords responsibility to provide fire alarms. They do have to provide a gas safety certificate, but if this lady wanted fire alarms, she could have got them from a hardware shop very cheaply, or got thefire service to install them free of charge.
This would probably have been quicker for her than phoning up the local news and bleating to the papers about the lack of facilities....
What a waste of tax payers money to pay for her and her very large family to be put in a HOTEL! makes me wonder why i pay my rent, I might just as well burn the place down get the council to put in me in a hotel!
then I will get a council house - sorted!
Posted by: Alan Partridge, Norwich on 9:52am Thu 15 May 08
Im gutted that my council tax money has been wasted in that way, if I have to stay in a travel lodge I have pay for , and my extra large plate as well.
Im gutted that my council tax money has been wasted in that way, if I have to stay in a travel lodge I have pay for , and my extra large plate as well.
Posted by: Ed, Oxford on 10:00am Thu 15 May 08
Sorry to say but this woman looks like scum.
Four kids and she's only 25. That means she had her first when she was 15.
She should have no right to free accommodation. If she can afford to have four kids, she can afford to put them up in a cheap hotel or B&B for a few nights.
Or maybe she's on benefits.......
Sorry to say but this woman looks like scum.
Four kids and she's only 25. That means she had her first when she was 15.
She should have no right to free accommodation. If she can afford to have four kids, she can afford to put them up in a cheap hotel or B&B for a few nights.
Or maybe she's on benefits.......
Posted by: bicesterbabe, Bicester on 10:06am Thu 15 May 08
Have a heart Lemur.
Posted by: Cabman, Oxford - with the cash-strapped council on 10:39am Thu 15 May 08
This story reminds me of a similar one, that was going around following the recent Doncaster earthquake.
"One resident - Sharon-Tracy Smith, a 15-year-old mother of 5 said, "It was such a shock, my little Chardonnay-Mercedes came running into my bedroom, crying! My youngest two, Chardonnay-Mercedes and Chardonnay-Mercedes slept through it all. I was still shaking when I was skinning up and watching Trisha the next morning." A reporter enquired if the other 2 children were also called Chardonnay-Mercedes, and on learning the news that this was the case, the mother explained that she used the children's surnames when calling them to avoid confusion".
Where do these ladies they get their children's names? Picking out letters from a scrabble bag?
This story reminds me of a similar one, that was going around following the recent Doncaster earthquake.
"One resident - Sharon-Tracy Smith, a 15-year-old mother of 5 said, "It was such a shock, my little Chardonnay-Mercedes came running into my bedroom, crying! My youngest two, Chardonnay-Mercedes and Chardonnay-Mercedes slept through it all. I was still shaking when I was skinning up and watching Trisha the next morning." A reporter enquired if the other 2 children were also called Chardonnay-Mercedes, and on learning the news that this was the case, the mother explained that she used the children's surnames when calling them to avoid confusion".
Where do these ladies they get their children's names? Picking out letters from a scrabble bag?
Posted by: Lemur on 11:25am Thu 15 May 08
Bicesterbabe -
Have a heart? This woman is plain ungrateful. If you own your house, you have put your own fire alarms in. And the fire service put them in for free if you ask them to.
Ms Partlett burnt her house down by leaving an iron switched on (which, incidentally, was provided through the council) on Sunday night / monday morning. By Monday PM the council had found her alternative emergancy accommodation. Thats pretty good going.
Yet they are still railroaded into apologising to her? Why? I think they have done ruddy well!!
Anyway, she didn't like the look of the emergancy place, so she turned her nose up, phoned the news and the papers,complained that there were no fire alarms, and got put in a cushy hotel!!
Rather than being grateful for being found emergency accommodation, sorting out the fire alarms herself and making the best of it, she has whinged and whined her way into a hotel at the tax payers expense.
How difficult would it have been for her to buy a couple of batteries for the fire alarms, or to have bought new ones, come to that?!
I have quite a big heart and initially felt very sorry for charmaine. But i bet she had no contencts insurance, so again the tax payer will have to pay for her new widescreen surround sound telly, and the cost of moving her yet again, or maybe they will have to bypass that and give her a council house.
I was born in oxford, but the mistake i have made is working and not spitting children out of my vagina at every opeertunity. As a result, i pay £755 per month rent and council tax, another £100 in bills, £80 on running a car, to GET to work and back, and I probably have less money than her to live on!!
I can't stand the attitude of people like her, who dont support themselves, and sponge off the tax payer, and then complain about what they are given - rather than sort things out (he fire alarms)herself and take a bit of responsibility for her own and her families welfare...
it has nothing to do with having a heart.
Bicesterbabe -
Have a heart? This woman is plain ungrateful. If you own your house, you have put your own fire alarms in. And the fire service put them in for free if you ask them to.
Ms Partlett burnt her house down by leaving an iron switched on (which, incidentally, was provided through the council) on Sunday night / monday morning. By Monday PM the council had found her alternative emergancy accommodation. Thats pretty good going.
Yet they are still railroaded into apologising to her? Why? I think they have done ruddy well!!
Anyway, she didn't like the look of the emergancy place, so she turned her nose up, phoned the news and the papers,complained that there were no fire alarms, and got put in a cushy hotel!!
Rather than being grateful for being found emergency accommodation, sorting out the fire alarms herself and making the best of it, she has whinged and whined her way into a hotel at the tax payers expense.
How difficult would it have been for her to buy a couple of batteries for the fire alarms, or to have bought new ones, come to that?!
I have quite a big heart and initially felt very sorry for charmaine. But i bet she had no contencts insurance, so again the tax payer will have to pay for her new widescreen surround sound telly, and the cost of moving her yet again, or maybe they will have to bypass that and give her a council house.
I was born in oxford, but the mistake i have made is working and not spitting children out of my vagina at every opeertunity. As a result, i pay £755 per month rent and council tax, another £100 in bills, £80 on running a car, to GET to work and back, and I probably have less money than her to live on!!
I can't stand the attitude of people like her, who dont support themselves, and sponge off the tax payer, and then complain about what they are given - rather than sort things out (he fire alarms)herself and take a bit of responsibility for her own and her families welfare...
it has nothing to do with having a heart.
Posted by: John (Rose Hill), Oxon on 11:56am Thu 15 May 08
Lemur
I agree 100%. The Fire Service will install fire alarms foc. Basic contents insurance would cost £20 per month ie £5 per week for £15K's worth. That equates toa packet of fags per week.
I wonder which she decided to spend the £5 on ?
Lemur
I agree 100%. The Fire Service will install fire alarms foc. Basic contents insurance would cost £20 per month ie £5 per week for £15K's worth. That equates toa packet of fags per week.
I wonder which she decided to spend the £5 on ?
Posted by: Rob, Witney on 12:27pm Thu 15 May 08
Lemur&John, I could NOT agree with you more!!!!I'm 30 and had to wait until I was 28 to have my first child, WHEN I COULD AFFORD IT! My outgoings for my house are over £1600 a month, most of that on a mortgage. This woman needs to learn that she ISN'T OWED A LIVING (contrary to popular belief)and get on with it. A hundred years ago she'd have been out on her backside along with her kids. GONE SOFT this nation. Do I feel sorry for her, [bold]do I B O L L O X!![/bold] [italic]italic[/italic]
Lemur&John, I could NOT agree with you more!!!!I'm 30 and had to wait until I was 28 to have my first child, WHEN I COULD AFFORD IT! My outgoings for my house are over £1600 a month, most of that on a mortgage. This woman needs to learn that she ISN'T OWED A LIVING (contrary to popular belief)and get on with it. A hundred years ago she'd have been out on her backside along with her kids. GONE SOFT this nation. Do I feel sorry for her,
do I B O L L O X!! Posted by: Rob, Witney on 12:32pm Thu 15 May 08
I forgot to say that it's not the children's fault but this woman needs to start supporting herself and stop moaning. You've got it easy darling!! Isn't life tough at times? Sorry to be nasty but come on, if she hadn't bleated so much I might have still felt sorry for her or gone and got her a new iron but some people are just beyond help!
I forgot to say that it's not the children's fault but this woman needs to start supporting herself and stop moaning. You've got it easy darling!! Isn't life tough at times? Sorry to be nasty but come on, if she hadn't bleated so much I might have still felt sorry for her or gone and got her a new iron but some people are just beyond help!
Posted by: simon, crystal palace on 3:35pm Thu 15 May 08
Everyone has hit the nail on the head with their comments. Whatever happened to taking responsibility for oneself? You can buy a smoke alarm from Homebase for a fiver - why did she not do this? Maybe because she expects everything to be done for her and paid by the tax payer. I'm sick and tired of people like this whingeing when the rest of us shoulder the bill.
Everyone has hit the nail on the head with their comments. Whatever happened to taking responsibility for oneself? You can buy a smoke alarm from Homebase for a fiver - why did she not do this? Maybe because she expects everything to be done for her and paid by the tax payer. I'm sick and tired of people like this whingeing when the rest of us shoulder the bill.
Posted by: B, ox on 5:24pm Thu 15 May 08
Just one of many examples of what is wrong with this city and country as a whole..........
Just one of many examples of what is wrong with this city and country as a whole..........
Posted by: !!!!!!!!!!!!, !!! on 5:27pm Thu 15 May 08
wooooooooahhhhhhhhh people!
what you say is true of a lot of people, and might be in this case but you dont know this woman. the kids might all have the same father, the dad may have gone off leaving her with nothing! you cant say she looks like scum just cos shes got four kids and live in a council flat!
wooooooooahhhhhhhhh people!
what you say is true of a lot of people, and might be in this case but you dont know this woman. the kids might all have the same father, the dad may have gone off leaving her with nothing! you cant say she looks like scum just cos shes got four kids and live in a council flat!
Posted by: Rob, Witney on 6:39pm Thu 15 May 08
[quote][bold]!!!!!!!!!!!![/bold] wrote:
wooooooooahhhhhhhhh people!
what you say is true of a lot of people, and might be in this case but you dont know this woman. the kids might all have the same father, the dad may have gone off leaving her with nothing! you cant say she looks like scum just cos shes got four kids and live in a council flat![/quote] Who's saying she looks like scum, I haven't attacked her kids, the point is she is expecting EVERYTHING on a silver plate. You want it, you pay for it like I have to! The problem with this country is the hard workers pay for those who choose not to! contraception is FREE too, use it or be expected to pay for your own short comings!
!!!!!!!!!!!! wrote:
wooooooooahhhhhhhhh people!
what you say is true of a lot of people, and might be in this case but you dont know this woman. the kids might all have the same father, the dad may have gone off leaving her with nothing! you cant say she looks like scum just cos shes got four kids and live in a council flat!
Who's saying she looks like scum, I haven't attacked her kids, the point is she is expecting EVERYTHING on a silver plate. You want it, you pay for it like I have to! The problem with this country is the hard workers pay for those who choose not to! contraception is FREE too, use it or be expected to pay for your own short comings!
Posted by: !!!, !!!! on 10:25pm Thu 15 May 08
ed said she was scum and u lot waded in. im stuck in a council flat with two kids. me and my partner earn nowhere near enough to get a mortgage or rent privately and i earn ok. maybe if the cost of living was a bit closer to the lower end wages people wouldnt live on benefits. if the best job u r capable of pays the minimum wage u need government help. if u work u slip into poverty. if u dont the gov pays everything. if those who chose to work wer e helped benefits dependents would fall.
ed said she was scum and u lot waded in. im stuck in a council flat with two kids. me and my partner earn nowhere near enough to get a mortgage or rent privately and i earn ok. maybe if the cost of living was a bit closer to the lower end wages people wouldnt live on benefits. if the best job u r capable of pays the minimum wage u need government help. if u work u slip into poverty. if u dont the gov pays everything. if those who chose to work wer e helped benefits dependents would fall.
Posted by: !!!, !!!! on 10:29pm Thu 15 May 08
i dont blame anyone except the government and the shambolic council. they have created the situation where immigrants and doleites are better off than those who work. these people are taking advantage of a crap sysytem. who are the mugs......them or us?
i dont blame anyone except the government and the shambolic council. they have created the situation where immigrants and doleites are better off than those who work. these people are taking advantage of a crap sysytem. who are the mugs......them or us?
Posted by: Miss TrishaTrash, Greater Leys on 11:24am Fri 16 May 08
Its my human rights to sleep wiv as many geezers as i can and have kids, else i cant get a bigger council house init? And the cost of livin is ridiculous, i had to send
Biggie-Nokia's dad out shoplifting just so he could have a new PS3 and grand theft auto,i mean how else do you keep an 8 year old entertained? and i just took out a social fund loan out last week so i could get an iPhone and a new 50" TV things are getting hard.
Its my human rights to sleep wiv as many geezers as i can and have kids, else i cant get a bigger council house init? And the cost of livin is ridiculous, i had to send
Biggie-Nokia's dad out shoplifting just so he could have a new PS3 and grand theft auto,i mean how else do you keep an 8 year old entertained? and i just took out a social fund loan out last week so i could get an iPhone and a new 50" TV things are getting hard.
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