The residents of five terraced houses, with a total of 28 apartments, had a dramatic night on Sunday. Halil Seferovic woke up at 3 a.m. to a faint alarm sound that probably came from the apartment next door. When he went out into the kitchen, he noticed a strong smell of smoke, but saw no fire. It wasn’t until he looked towards the neighbour’s terrace that the flames appeared. He ran to get the fire extinguisher, waking his sleeping wife and daughter. Photo: Philip Kollstrøm / news ROGALAND Seferovic asked his wife to call the fire brigade, while he ran over to the neighbour, where the fire started. – When I got there, I saw that the neighbor had come out with the children. I was able to put out the fire that was outside, but also saw that it was burning inside. I ran to the rest of the neighbors and started ringing the doorbell. He then got both his wife and children out to the car. At this point there was a lot of smoke on the spot, says Seferovic. May have saved lives Rune Tønessen is a task leader in Rogaland fire and rescue IKS. He explains that what Seferovic did, ringing the doorbell of the neighbours, is both right and important. – It is very important that you try to give notice in such a situation. It is something that can save lives, says Tønessen. – Dramatic Photo: Philip Kollstrøm / news ROGALAND When the fire service arrived at the scene it was burning badly, says emergency manager Yngve Brun of Rogaland Fire and Rescue IKS. – There were many people at the scene who screamed that there were people inside the various apartments. We evacuated before we started the extinguishing. The fire took off while we were getting people out. We also had to evacuate with a ladder, including an infant. So it was pretty dramatic to begin with, but no lives were lost. The terraced houses and flats that burned on the night of Sunday are student flats. 80 people were evacuated, and six were sent to hospital with minor smoke damage. – What would have happened if we didn’t wake up? Seferovic reacts to the fact that the fire alarm did not sound in the other houses. – It is scary. What would have happened if we didn’t wake up? This was a big fire, and we were next to each other. It is dangerous to life, and scary to think about. Several of the residents that news has spoken to responded that they did not hear any alarm. Halil Seferovic visited his former home on Sunday morning. To see if there were any assets that could be salvaged. Photo: Philip Kollstrøm / news ROGALAND The fire service was alerted by an automatic alarm – The alarm was triggered for the first time at 03.15, but the person in that apartment turned off the alarm and assumed it was a false alarm. The next alarm went off at 03:31, the fire service was already on the scene, says Elisbeth Faret to news. She is the managing director of the Student Union in Stavanger (SiS). It is SiS that runs the student accommodation that was affected by the fire last night. She explains that the fire alarms in the terraced houses are connected in series, but that the first alarm was switched off. Elisabeth Faret, managing director of the Student Union in Stavanger (SIS). The picture was taken on another occasion. Photo: Josef Benoni Ness Tveit / news Operations leader Rune Tønnesen says that the fire service was first alerted by an automatic fire alarm from the building. A so-called ABA alarm. Tønnesen does not know the terraced houses’ alarm system in detail, but can say that the ABA alarm came in before residents called in. – This was incredibly sad news for us and we are doing everything we can to ensure that the students affected are taken care of, says Faret in SiS. Emergency center established At the Radisson Blu Atlantic hotel, Stavanger municipality has established an emergency center. – We are in constant contact with those who are affected, and keep them updated as best as possible. Our most important priority is to ensure that the students have a safe environment and a roof over their heads. We are working to get the situation under control, says Faret. Seferovic and his family have now been given shelter with family. The fire department has told them that their apartment, as of now, is uninhabitable. Four apartments uninhabitable Operations leader in Rogaland Fire and Rescue, Rune Tønnessen. Photo: Philip Kollstrøm / news ROGALAND Tønnessen states that only the terraced house where the fire started is uninhabitable. That terraced house contained four apartments, and a total of 29 people were evacuated from this terraced house on the night of Sunday. The remaining four terraced houses are either habitable, or will be soon, says Tønnesen. The cause of the fire is still unknown, but the police will investigate.
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Heard no alarm – Halil ran and woke the neighbors – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
