A soot-stained window at Duval House

A RETIREMENT home resident has told the Tribune how he woke to the smell of smoke during a 3am fire that left him shocked and frightened.

The blaze on Monday at Duval House in Elthorne Road, Archway, is thought to have been caused by an electrical fault. A soot-stained window shows where it took hold.

Costas Kalli, 64, who has been a resident at the home for the past eight years and lives directly above the flat where the fire broke out, said: “I was woken up by the smell of smoke. Then I could see smoke coming from underneath my window so my first reaction was to see why the fire alarm hadn’t gone off.”

A spokesperson for the London Fire Brigade said that alarms had sounded “in the room of the fire and communal areas, not every room as per the building’s ‘stay put’ policy.”

The policy encourages residents to stay in their rooms, unless they become “affected by smoke or fire”.

According to the Brigade the policy is designed to “contain fire in its compartment of origin for enough time to allow the fire service to extinguish it before it has a chance to spread”.

But Mr Kalli said he did not feel this policy was safe after his experience.

“If I’d had stayed in my flat, I would have died from the smoke.” he said.

After leaving his room Mr Kalli went downstairs to check on his neighbour. “I could see flames and they were quite low in the window of his kitchen,” he said,

“I looked again and the flames were really high. It was frightening to tell you the truth.”

Mr Kalli called for help by pressing the emergency button issued to him by the retirement home.

“I said fire, fire. It’s a real fire!” he said.

Whilst waiting for help to arrive, Mr Kalli said he searched for fire extinguishers on the second floor to try and contain the flames.

“I was looking for a fire extinguisher, because we used to have them on each landing, but I couldn’t find them,” he said. “There were no fire exting­uishers. It’s crazy.”

Four fire engines, 25 firefighters and crews from the London Ambulance Service arrived at Duval House at 2.55am, and the fire was out shortly after 4.20am. A man was taken to hospital, and a woman was assessed at the scene.

A spokesperson for Clarion housing, which manages Duval House, said: “Our team has been working extensively to support residents on site at Duval House since the recent fire.

“We have also been working closely with the London Fire Brigade and can confirm that they are satisfied with Clarion’s actions and management of the fire alarm and detection system in the building.

“The safety of our residents is our priority, and we follow the national guidance for this property by providing fire extinguishing equipment in high-risk areas only.”

They added: “Our team also conducts weekly tests on the fire safety systems in the block, and keep residents informed on what they should do in the event of fire in their own property or in another part of the block.”