Brave four-year-old Staffordshire boy got help after spotting neighbour's kitchen fire

Oliver Nugent was playing in the back garden of his home in Cheslyn Hay near Cannock when he smelled smoke coming from a nearby property at around 5.45pm on September 13.

The quick-thinking youngster ran to tell his dad Ryan what he could smell and that he thought someone might be in need of help.

As a result, his father dialled 999 after seeing the smoke spewing from the property and around 15 firefighters were scrambled to the undisclosed address where a gas cooker and carpet tiles had been involved in a fire.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service said no-one was hurt during the incident and the occupants were given a check up at the scene. 

Oliver was earlier this month invited to Cannock Community Fire Station where he was treated to a tour  and presented with a commendation for his actions by the county's Chief Fire Officer Rob Barber.

His father Ryan, aged 35, a quality engineer, said: “I’m so proud that he was able to see a problem and knew what to do and came straight to us. You don’t expect someone of Oliver’s age to know what to do or to make the connection necessarily that smoke means fire.

“He’s always been interested in industrial and agricultural vehicles, tractors are his favourite but fire engines are a close second. He was a bit overwhelmed with everyone there and all the vehicles, but once it had calmed down he really engaged and loved to learn about what firefighters do and how the equipment works.

“He’s usually such a shy boy but we’re so proud that on the day of the fire, he persevered and got us to check on our neighbours.”

While his mother Sarah, a nursery manager,  explained that Oliver had learned about fire safety at school. "I think that’s where he got his understanding of where smoke comes from and how he knew what to do," she said.

Praising him Mir Barber added: “Thanks to Oliver’s keen sense of smell and his awareness of the dangers smoke often represents, he was able to quickly tell his dad about what was worrying him.

“His alertness and quick-thinking could have made a significant difference to this incident, had it escalated. I would like to commend Oliver for his impressive actions and give a special mention to his dad for taking his concerns seriously and letting us know what was happening straight away.”

The neighbour's home suffered minor smoke-logging and the fire crews used specialist fans to ventilate the rooms and isolated the gas and electric supply to make the property safe.