Appeal to help young Leighton Buzzard family rebuild their lives after microwave explosion causes devastation

A fundraising page has been set up to help a young Leighton Buzzard family rebuild their lives after the contents of their flat was destroyed by a microwaveexplosion.

Leanne Heppleston, of Leighton Buzzard, set up the page after her daughter-in-law's flat on Sandhills was devastated by the fire on Monday (November 1).

Claude, 23, was sterilising her seven-week-old son Kai's bottles in the microwave and when she returned to the kitchen it was filled with steam and the microwave was on fire.

Leanne says the family lost all their possessions from the flat and so she set up the fundraising page to help them rebuild their lives and take some of the pressure off her daughter-in-law.

She said: "They lost everything. They made that into their first family home and now have nothing.

"When I got to the flat the fire had been put out. The fire didn't reach their rooms but there was smoke damage through the whole flat, nothing was salvageable.

"No alarm went off in the flat or the building, there is an investigation looking into that.

“I understand that the next day Paradigm Housing Group carried out checks on a number of their properties.

"It was housing association flat and they have not been homed yet - they were offered somewhere 45 minutes away but Claude couldn't take it [as they need to stay in Leighton Buzzard], they are both living with me. They could be out of the flat until April/May.

"All they have is the clothes they were wearing so I wanted to set up this page to help them with anything they need, but mainly to furnish their new home when they get one as they lost everything.

"The community spirit has been amazing, we have had so many donations, a cot, clothes, toys, we have been overwhelmed and humbled by people's kindness."

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue were called to Cormorant Way, Leighton Buzzard at 1pm on Monday after a microwave caught fire in a second floor flat.

A spokesperson for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue said: "Four firefighters wearing breathing apparatus used two hose reels and a covering jet to extinguish the fire. The flat had 50 per cent fire damage and 100 per cent damage from smoke."

A spokesperson for Paradigm Housing Group said: "We are working closely with Ms Kachou and are offering her support in dealing with the problems following the fire in her flat.

"On the day of the fire we attended with a surveyor to inspect the damage to ensure the immediate safety of the resident and others living in the building.

"We are awaiting the fire service report to make sure we fully understand the causes and circumstances of this fire. Neither Ms Kachou nor other residents have reported to us that the fire alarms did not work in this case, and we will review this once the information from the Fire Service is available.

"We regularly check fire alarms and other fire safety measures in communal areas to ensure that these work effectively.

"We have offered Ms Kachou temporary accommodation but do not immediately have a vacant property available that meets her needs.

"We have also offered a hotel, but Ms Kachou has chosen to stay with family until we have a suitable alternative property.

"We will continue to do work with Ms Kachou to ensure that she is settled in a new property as soon as possible."

To support the family visit: www.gofundme.com/f/w5vkyh-help-a-young-family-rebuild-their-home.