Unusual circumstances resulting in house fires caused by sun rays

The most common causes of house fires in the uk…

• Smoking
• Cooking equipment
• unattended candles

I’m sure everyone can think of a scenario in which one of these 3 could lead to a fire. But with the unusual surge in sunshine across the UK, a report caught my eye describing a house fire ’caused by a nutella jar’. Baffled, I read the article, and went on to find many other similar scenarios, where sunlight had refracted off a jar or mirror, and the item had redirected the suns beam onto a set of curtains or something else flammable.

In this scenario the nutella jar, which was being used to store loom bands redirected the sun’s beams onto the bedroom blinds and the blaze erupted from there.

Charlie Pugsley, of London Fire Brigade (LFB), said: ‘It sounds far-fetched that a jar containing a few rubber bands caused a severe house fire but that’s exactly what happened.

‘It’s worth spending five minutes checking that your window ledges are clear of any glass or crystal that might lead to a potentially life-changing blaze.’

Do you ever consider moving high risk items from your windowsills? Check them before you next leave the house, move any glass, compressed cans such as deodorant, and if you’re prone to having a cigarette out your window, don’t leave your lighter on the sill.