Firefighters praised for efforts during house fire in Erleigh Road

By JAMES ALDRIDGE Local democracy reporter

FIREFIGHTERS have been praised for their efforts in rescuing family members from a house fire which claimed two lives.

Mohammed Hussain, who was in his nineties, and Naseem Khalid, who was in her fifties, both died following a blaze at a terraced house in Erleigh Road, Reading on Wednesday, April 5. Other family members remain in hospital.

The fire broke out around 1.30am, and crews raced to save four people trapped inside the home.

Tributes were paid at a meeting of the Royal Berkshire Fire Authority (RBFA), the governing body of the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS), held on Thursday, April 27.

Condolences were provided to the family, and fire crews praised for reacting speedily.

Cllr Paul Gittings (Labour, Southcote), chairman of the RBFA, said: “Two people have died following the fire, three others were seriously injured in the fire. Due to the lifesaving actions of the crew who attended they are steadily making a recovery.

“More than 40 members of staff tackled the blaze. The crews worked tirelessly into the early hours of the morning, spending over six hours at the scene.

“On behalf of the fire authority, I’d like to thank those attending the incident for their professionalism in what was an incredibly challenging incident.”

Cllr Gittings then shared a quote from Nick Dunbar, head of operations at the South Central Ambulance Service who also responded: “Those early interventions have certainly helped to save the lives of those family members.”

In the weeks following the fire, RBFRS teams worked with partners to visit the local community and nearby residents to provide fire safety advice and guidance.

More than 100 residents were visited and 80 Safe and Well visits were completed.

A community event was organised at the Pakistan Community Centre to speak with neighbours.

Cllr Gittings added: “Our thoughts remain firmly with the friends, family and local community affected by this incident.”

Wayne Bowcock, chief fire officer at Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “We mustn’t forget that two people did tragically die in that incident, despite the best efforts of all of the emergency responders and our crews particularly who attended.

“But there are three children who are still hospitalised and are slowly making a recovery, and we do try to keep crews who were involved updated on their condition because it helps with part of their welfare and understanding of what’s going on as well.

“The first call to the first pump in attendance was only four minutes and we got three appliances in attendance in less than 10 minutes.

“There were four people rescued, six people were involved, two people were outside on arrival.”

Firefighters using breathing apparatus tackled the blaze and rescued those trapped inside.

Mr Bowcock added: “The first rescue occurred seven minutes after the first call, the second was at 10 minutes and third, bearing in mind one of those rescues involved two people, was approximately 14 minutes from first call, which is incredibly fast.

“At the time, firefighting action was taking place as well because the staircase was compromised in the property. The rescues were all from the first floor.

“Crews knew where to go because fire control got their information from the caller and passed it to the crews before their arrival.

“They had to fight their way upstairs in order to carry out those rescues.” n Donations can be made at: www.sktwelfare.org/givingtogether/sidraq/sadkah-jariyah

He called the rapidity of the rescue “quite staggering”.

An online fundraiser was set up to support the family affected. It has raised more than £5,000.

Entries open for charity golf day

ENTRIES are open for a charity golf day taking place in Sonning next month – and there’s an added incentive for those teeing off in the form of a bacon roll.

Touringsport is celebrating its 20th anniversary with the event, which will support the work of The Cowshed. n For more details, call Jem Hancock from Touring Sport on 0118 921 9111.

Arrival is from 11am, with a shotgun start at 1pm.

Contests are for men’s, women’s and mixed teams, as well as individual entries. Place are for adults only.

A two-course meal will be served in the evening.

Places cost £70 per player, and teams can be up to four people.

The event will be held at Sonning Golf Club on Friday, June 9.

Golden Hinde anniversary contest

SCHOOLS in Berkshire are among those being invited to a competition with the chance to visit a historic river museum.

The Golden Hinde Museum, a replica of Sir Francis Drake’s famous sailing ship moored in central London, is offering schools the chance of an educational visit with a competition event celebrating its 50th year.

Primary schools are invited to create a birthday card in honour of the floating museum’s Golden Anniversary, and a selection of submissions will be exhibited on board.

Secondary schools can take part in a poetry competition, where students can submit verse centre around the theme of sailing or the sea.

Entries will be judged by the ship’s navigator, Jilly Francis, and former crew-mate and resident and resident artist Zillah Richards, with one winning school gaining an invitation to visit the museum.

The museum is also running a Circumnavigation Challenge to help raise funds.

As the original ship travelled more than 100,000 miles–equivalent to a full circumnavigation of the globe–the museum is challenging schools and families to undertake their own circumnavigation.

This can be running, rowing, swimming, cycling, sailing or skateboarding, or however the participants want to travel.

The museum is currently raising funds, including a crowdfunding campaign, to support its 2023 Re-rigging Project. n To take part in the competition and claim a school participation pack, visit www.goldenhinde. co.uk. Entries close on Monday, May 22.

The original Golden Hind vessel was renowned for its historic circumnavigation of the globe in the late-1570s, captained by Sir Francis Drake.

Drake was partly sponsored by Queen Elizabeth I, and his journeys on the ship would contribute to the instigation of the Anglo Spanish War in 1585.

While the original galleon was eventually left to disintegrate, the Golden Hinde Museum has been offering members of the public a seaworthy replica of the worldfamous ship, as well as hosting live events and over-night stays since 1973.