A fire was started in a Cartmel College flat after a firework was thrown into a student’s bedroom. The firework was believed to have been thrown into the bedroom at approximately 11pm last night. The student was sleeping in the room at the time.
Firefighters are believed to have arrived at the building between 11:05pm and 11:15pm. No suspects have yet been found.
The student, a first-year international, told SCAN that she was sleeping when the firework was thrown into her bedroom. She said she jumped out of bed and then tried to put out the fire. When this proved unsuccessful, she grabbed her duvet and ran out of the room. She alerted the other members of her flat, who all vacated the building before going next door to phone the porters and the fire brigade. All witnesses say that they did not see anyone outside the flat when they left.
The firework could be heard throughout the building. Residents on the top floor of Block 55 said that they heard a long and sustained banging sound – one resident saying they thought it was just someone banging on the wall. “It sounded like it was just below my window” another resident told SCAN. They all vacated once the alarm was raised.
The residents of Block 55 were all relocated to Barker House Farm, where they had to await further instructions. They were told that while the College would do its best to house the students for the night, it was recommended that if students have friends on campus they should try to sleep in their rooms for the night.
While smoke was seen coming out of several ground floor and first floor rooms, it is believed the fire itself was kept within the confines of the room the firework was thrown into. A police officer who arrived at the scene described the room as “a mess.” SCAN has been informed that while the majority of Block 55 will be able to move back in, the residents of the bottom floor may have to be relocated permanently.
Speaking to SCAN, the student said that she was worried because a lot of important things were left in her room when the firework went off. “My passport, my bank card, my library card… everything that confirms my identity is in my room. It happened so suddenly.”
SCAN will update this story as more information becomes available.
