Spotlight session Helen Winskill/Cleveland Fire & Rescue
The customer’s cooker had a heavy build-up of grease and fat, which again was a fire risk however, the customer refused a safe and well referral.
Helen spoke about a case study involving a customer who was experiencing mental health issues and is also a veteran. Access to the property was difficult due to overgrown bushes and trees, which restricted access to the front door of the property. Although the customer was living at the property, all the windows were boarded up. The customer lived alone, had isolated himself from society and was an extensive hoarder.
The customer’s cooker had a heavy build-up of grease and fat, which again was a fire risk however, the customer refused a safe and well referral. The customer was living downstairs, which was only heated by a small, old gas fire.
Cleveland Fire and Rescue service was eventually granted access to the property via a joint visit with the council. On this visit the customer agreed to have the trees and bushes cleared, which allowed a clear access to and from the property. He also accepted cooking and safety advice from the fire service, which had been personalised to his kitchen and circumstances. Cleveland Fire and Rescue service also installed smoke/fire and Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarms within the property, as well as CO information and advice to the customer.
Helen explained their service has a system in place to trigger extra resource. As this customer was a hoarder, he was flagged on the system. In the event of a fire / emergency at the property, extra resources would be sent out.
