The London Fire Brigade said in a statement after the horror incident that house fires caused by light reflecting by objects are “not as rare as you might think”
Six people have been hospitalised after a “glass object” reflecting light ignited a fire in a popular London suburb.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) has confirmed that the object intensified the sun’s rays, directing the light onto a home in Ealing, west London. The resulting fire saw six people taken to hospital via ambulance after suffering from smoke inhalation.
Speaking to MyLondon, a spokesperson for the LFB said firefighters were called to the scene on Elderberry Road at around 7pm on Tuesday evening, with four engines and approximately 25 personnel attending the blaze from multiple nearby stations, including Chiswick, Heston, Park Royal and Hammersmith. The fire was under control by 8.25pm, but the organisation reported extensive damage.
The flames erupted from the first floor of the two-floor property that evening, with the six people – three of whom were children – treated at the scene before they were quickly escorted to hospital. Firefighters confirmed that the first floor of the home was completely destroyed by the evening, adding earlier today that the ground floor was also partially damaged.
The unusual incident has led the LFB to issue a warning about the potential dangers of fires caused by sunlight reflecting through clear glass. The spokesman said: “These sorts of fires are not as rare as you would think.
“They can happen all year around, but as we head into summer and the sun gets stronger, it’s really important that reflective items such as mirrors, crystals and glass ornaments are kept out of direct sunlight.”
Emergency services have long credited reflective surfaces as being the cause of house fires, with fishbowls, jam jars, and more known to focus the sun’s rays. Once the light is focused on a single spot, the concentrated energy scortches the surface, and can ignite fires.
The LFB has reported several hundred house fires as having been caused by this mechanism, with more than 125 noted over the last half a decade alone. The sunlight involved means that incidents like these are much more common over the summer months. Naturally, easily combustible surfaces like wood and paper are more prone to igniting.
