An eight-year-old Watford boy has been praised by the chief of the Hertfordshire Fire Service after calling 999 and alerting them of a fire in his neighbour’s house.
Cody was urged by his mum Jo to call the emergency services, who rushed over with husband Ray to check on their neighbour.
The incident occurred around 7pm on Thursday March 18.
As a result of Cody’s swift actions, crews from Watford, Garston and Rickmansworth were soon on the scene and fighting the fire which had started in the living room on the ground floor.
Fortunately, the resident was not at home at the time of the fire and was safely accounted for later on.
Praising Cody, Hertfordshire County Council’s director of community protection and chief fire officer, Darryl Keen said: “Cody showed incredible presence of mind while making a 999 call to us, during what would have been an extremely frightening incident for all concerned.
“His superb skills when making the call showed a maturity beyond his years and impressed us with how calmly he listened and answered our questions in what was a potentially life-threatening situation.
“He was able to provide us with an address and exactly what had happened so far, what he could see and that both his mum and dad had gone to help but were away from the fire.”
Cody was presented with a Certificate of Excellence from Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service Control Room at his school this week.
Cody said: “I was really worried about the fire, but I was being brave and wanted to get help. I called the emergency services and asked for the fire brigade. I told them where to come and that there was a big fire. I was a bit scared, but I stayed calm.”
Cody’s proud mum Jo said: “We’ve always made him aware of what to do in an emergency, but he’s never had to put it into practice until that night.”
Fire crews extinguished the fire using two hose reels and four sets of breathing apparatus, while neighbours carried out a local search for the resident who was luckily found safe and well around an hour after the accidental fire broke out.
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