A resourceful neighbor came pulling the house fire hose when a fridge caught fire on the night of Good Friday. The effort limited the spread of the fire on Tjøme.
– It’s great to have good neighbors who help, says Ola Sommerstad Fønhus (25) to VG after the night’s drama on the island in Færder municipality south of Tønsberg.
His roommate Maud Hansen (29) woke him just under an hour after midnight. Bangs and crackles came from the kitchen and the smoke detectors in the apartment went off.
With their almost two-year-old daughter in their arms, they got out of the apartment.
– Maud ran upstairs to alert the neighbours, while I went in to locate where the fire was. The smoke was not so dense then, I bent down, says Fønhus.
He quickly established that the flames came from the built-in refrigerator. It has been there since the family moved in four years ago.
– It is extreme to think that such a thing could happen, says the 25-year-old.
The couple above had also gone to bed when they woke up to the bang from the apartment below.
– I thought someone was setting off fireworks. But when we got up, it was also full of smoke in our living room, Marit Johannessen (64) tells VG.
They got into the clothes and out of the house. While Fønhus was on the mobile phone with the fire service, Per Johannessen (70) had a bright idea.
– He pulled out the fire hose we have under the sink in the kitchen. I think it was quite quick of him, in the whole thing, says his wife Marit.
The snake was pulled out onto the balcony and thrown down. From her own terrace door, Ola Sommerstad Fønhus could stand and rinse, in just her underpants.
– The neighbor and I took turns flushing, until the fire brigade arrived, says Fønhus.
Marit Johannessen thought it was well done.
– It worked beyond all expectations. They managed to keep the flames down from the roof.
Fønhus also believes they contributed to preventing the fire from spreading in the four-person home in Haugsrønningen, which is one of several houses in a condominium from 2011.
Vestfold intermunicipal fire service agrees that the effort was invaluable.
– Unique efforts from residents with good help from neighbors on the spot prevented a long, major fire, writes fire chief Ivar Paulsen on Twitter.
He writes that the neighbours’ joint efforts with the house fire hose kept the fire at bay until they arrived, because by then the kitchen was fully engulfed in flames.
Fire crews quickly got the flames under control.
– We carry out the fridge and tear down parts of the kitchen furniture, says Paulsen.
Ola Sommerstad Fønhus says it was a very dramatic night.
– The fire brigade were very good and we have a neighbor who helped a lot. It was scary while it was going on, but fortunately it went well with everyone, says the 25-year-old.
He believes that fires can occur in all kinds of electrical appliances and is glad the family had working smoke detectors.
Their apartment is uninhabitable, while there is soot everywhere at the couple’s house above.
Per Johannessen does not want attention and lets his wife speak for him.
– He is modest and does not want to be the hero of the night, says Marit Johannessen.
