We had a fire.......!

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Yesterday evening, my hubby put on the fireplace, so it was nice and cosy in the house. We went to the kitchen to have dinner. Somebody said "there is a weird smell here". But we thought it were Jo's feet once again. Then Jo returned to the living room, and yelled: "the cat tree is on fire!!"
OMG, it was TRUE!! The tree is always standing in front of the closed fireplace, so we have no idea why it caught fire all of a sudden :eek: :eek: . Bernard and Jo opened the door to the patio, and took the whole thing outside. Part is ruined, but we were very lucky after all! What if one of the cats would have been napping on the tree??? What if this would have happened while we were out of the room??:eek: :eek: I am still all shaky....

Here are some pics of the damage:
http://users.pandora.be/bernardgabriels/images/fire1.jpg
http://users.pandora.be/bernardgabriels/images/fire2.jpg
http://users.pandora.be/bernardgabriels/images/fire3.jpg

Luckily, the rest of the tree isn't damaged, thanks to Jo!! But there is still that awfell smell in the house.... ughhh:(

[mei]

:eek: :eek:
timely detect, just as well

[Sara luvs her Tinky]

OMG!!:eek:

I am so glad you guys and none of the kitties were hurt!! That is so scary. I wonder why the cat tree caught on fire...

How scary!!!

[joycenalex]

holy cow!!! glad you, your family and the rest of the house is all right. wowsa!!!

[QueenScoopalot]

How frightening! :eek: The material used on the cat tree is probably flammable if it caught fire so easily. It looks like maybe a polyester mix? It appears melted in the pictures. Thank God no one was hurt by the fire.

[catnapper]

:eek: :eek: OMG!!!! Glad everyone is ok. That's very scary.

Getting technical here: a lot of the synthetic fibres used to make carpet catch fire easily. In the 90's there was a new "wonder carpet" that they had to take off the market because vaccuum cleaners were melting the carpet, in a few cases setting the floor on fire! :eek: (please don't ask me HOW vaccuum cleaners were melting the yarns... I don't remember, all I do know is that my interior design teacher told us to stay far away from carpets made from that nylon fibre) Sounds like the manufacturer of the cat tree got hold of this carpet to make these cat trees.

[Karen]

I am glad everyone is okay, and hope the smell goes away soon. Is your weather mild enough to leav the woindows open today?

[pitc9]

OMG!!! Glad to hear no one got hurt!!!

[ramanth]

Goodness!! Glad you all caught it in time and no one was hurt. *hugs*

[kimlovescats]

THANK GOD you all were home and smelled it before it caught your couch, or something else on fire ... could have been very bad. I'd be shaking too ... poor thing! (((BIG HUGS))) and guess none of us will place our kitty trees anywhere near our fireplaces any more, huh?

Kim;)

[sirrahbed]

(((hugs)))) Omegosh - reading your account scared me too! How thankful I am that you were at home and that Jo smelled the smoke quickly. Fires scare me so much anyway!!! Those pictures of little kitties left on the fabric are sickening.
Could you contact the manufacturer to warn them???
I am glad ya'll are SAFE!

[jazzcat]

I'm glad everyone is okay. How scary!

[RICHARD]

Look at the second picture and you can see two cat figures burnt into the inside of the house

On the right is a tux sitting and the other figure is the two white legs and the black tail of the other cat...

[lynnestankard]

So glad you're all OK Lut. What a shock. {{Hugs}}}

Have you got a smoke alarm fitted? If not, please get one.

Lynne

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Originally posted by lynnestankard
Have you got a smoke alarm fitted? If not, please get one.

Lynne

We have it in EVERY room, Lynn! It is proven now that there is NO time to waste when an alarm finally does go of... :eek: !
There was not much "smoke", just lots of flames :eek: :eek:

[Cinder & Smoke]

:eek:

Glad no Hoomins or FurKids were injured!!

Do you have Fire Insurance that covers the building & CONTENTS??

In the USA, "Fire Insurance" covers both the damage caused
by the Flames as well as by the SMOKE.
You probably have more "Smoke Damage" than fire damage.

"Smoke Damage" can be very high (costly) from just a small fire.
Smoke seeps into everything - furniture, drapes, walls, rugs,
closets, clothes, bed covers - everything! :(
And it may be worse than you think - you've all become used to it
by now. Ask a neighbor to come into the house and <*sniff*> around.
Chances are the neighbor will notice the "smoke smell" while
you think it's gone away.

The best way to remove the "smoke odor" is by washing or dry cleaning.
That's what's so expensive - having to wash almost the whole house
and all the stuff in it! :(

If you have lingering smoke odors, consider reporting the fire
to your Insurance Company.
And if you didn't call the Fire Department/Brigade when it happened; you'll
probably have to call them now to come make a report.
Most USA Insurance Companies won't process a claim
without seeing an official Fire Report.

Good Luck!!

/s/ FireFighter Phred
.

[moosmom]

OMG!!! :eek: Glad to hear no one was hurt. I'd definitely contact the manufacturer. There needs to be some kind of warning label. Afterall, they put warnings on kids pj's and bedding, right??

[luvofallhorses]

:eek: :eek: I am so glad nobody was hurt! {{{hugs}}}

[petslover]

Oh gosh. I am glad that noone got hurt too.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

Gosh, I'm so glad you are all safe! Please give the kitty kids a kiss on the head from me, ok?

[lizbud]

Wow Lut, how scary for you all.:eek: That was quick thinking
by Bernard & Jo. I'm so glad that no humans or kitties were
injured & that you all were home at the time.

I remember once as a child at my Grandmother's house, a huge
Christmas tree burst into flames. The house was full of adult
Aunts & Uncles & two of them carried the whole tree right out
the front door. A lot of smoke, but no real damage.It can be very
frightning. I'm glad you are all okay.

[manda_moo87]

YIKES! What a scare... glad everyone is ok. :)

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Thanks everybody for the good vibes!!
The only damage we have is a partly ruined cat-tree. But Inka & Maya say (sorry: meow!!) that they didn't use that tunnel anyway!;) I will go to the shop where I bought it asap, and take the pics I took with me. It would be great to get a refund, as there is NO warning tag on the tree :eek: :rolleyes: !
As we got the burning tree outside so fast (thanks hubby and son!!!!), the "smell" is reasonable. A few days more of airing will take care of it. Luckily, the temperatures are unusually high for this time of the year! Yes, we are insured for this, but as the damage is just that cat-tree, I won't report it. Don't want to get the fee up....;) :D

[Randi]

What a scary thing to have happen. I'm glad you're all safe! :)

[gini]

Lut, thank God you caught the fire in time. It must have frightened you so much.

I think Phred has some good ideas for you because the smoke smell will linger.

How scary that the cat tree caught on fire so quickly. A lesson to all of us.

[Nomilynn]

eek how scary! I'm glad everyone is alright :)

[AmberLee]

What a shock. So glad that no one was hurt. {{{hugs to you and the furkids!}}}

[Tubby & Peanut's Mom]

Oh my! How scary!!! :eek: Boy am I glad you've got a quick son and hubby, and that you were home at the time! Although I'm sure you wouldn't have had the fireplace going if you weren't home....but still...you know what I mean.

I'm so glad you, your family and Maya and Inka are all ok. What a scare!

[RICHARD]

Originally posted by Maya & Inka's mommy

http://users.pandora.be/bernardgabriels/images/fire2.jpg
[[/B]

I know that I am the only one that sees this!!!


Look at the inside of the circle.

There is the shape of a black and white cat sitting down, his 'head' is hidden....

If you look to the left you see a 'cat' walking- from the back side-
two white legs and a tail standing straight up...

LOLOLOL,

I have been thinking about that picture since I saw it.....

P.S. can someone humor me???

[todd]

wow :eek: