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03
Jul 2024
Couple launch fundraising appeal after house fire
A couple have launched a fundraising appeal after their house was severely damaged by fire over the weekend.
Kay Mann, 22, and Connor Lond, 26, had to be evacuated from the house in Shaw Mills when a tumble dryer on the first floor of the terraced property went up in flames on Sunday (June 30) evening at 7.22pm.
Fire crews from Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon rushed to the house but the first floor suffered 100% fire damage.
The Stray Ferret reported on the incident, which at the time North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said occurred in the 'Summerbridge area'.
Shaw Mills fire
It is now thought the fire was caused by a blown fuse in the tumble dryer located in a first-floor room used as an office.
Besides fire damage, the house has suffered significant smoke and water damage.
Ms Mann told the Stray Ferret they “left with nothing". She added:
All we had was the PJ’s we had on and our two dogs.
After waiting for the fire incident officer to inspect the property they travelled two hours to stay with family in Lincolnshire.
The couple have been engaged for a year and were saving for their wedding.
They said they launched the fundraising campaign because they had spent all their savings on clothes and repairs caused by the fire.
The tumble dryer where fire broke out.
She said:
Nothing upstairs was salvageable. You don’t realise how much smoke damage can do. We are trying our best to fumble through.
She added the fundraiser is partly for house repairs and partly for donations towards their wedding.
Ms Mann said:
Some people might say it is unnecessary or not needed but it is just something to keep us going, a light at the end of the tunnel.
We have set £10,000 as the aim but we’d appreciate literally anything. We aren’t being greedy and we would donate whatever is left over to the fire service.
Everyone dreams of their wedding even as a kid and we want our dreams to be reality, and they were going to be, but now any plans have gone to shambles.
Fire damage at the Shaw Mills house
The pair, who work in the Harrogate area, moved away from Lincolnshire when they were younger.
Ms Mann said their insurance didn't cover the full repair costs and they are currently in talks with North Yorkshire Council.
She said:
We want to get back to Harrogate soon, it is hard leaving everything you have built. We both work in the area and don’t want to lose our jobs. It is all so scary, the fact that so many things are out of our control.
It is really overwhelming. It is taking time to settle in. It all feels so surreal. I just don’t know what is going to happen and I’m so scared we’ll be left with nothing.
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