County Antrim family’s Christmas nightmare: Narrow escape from blaze sparked by fireplace ashes

Ring camera footage as the blaze took hold at the rear of the Nichols’ family home in Antrim

A County Antrim family have shared a stark warning about fire safety after a terrifying early-hours blaze on Boxing Day that could have destroyed their home — and potentially cost lives — had circumstances been even slightly different.

Graeme and Victoria Nichols, who live in the Antrim area with their children, were woken in the early hours of Boxing Day morning to find flames engulfing a wheelie bin beside their home, dangerously close to a domestic oil tank containing hundreds of litres of fuel.

The family, who run the popular children’s role-play attraction The Wee Village in Doagh, say they are “extremely lucky” to have escaped the incident unharmed — and have spoken out to ensure others do not make the same mistake.

Christmas joy turned to terror

Ring camera footage captured the explosion at the rear of the Nichols’ family home in Antrim

The incident came just hours after what Victoria described as “the most amazing Christmas Day”.

In a detailed account shared publicly, she explained how the family had enjoyed a quiet festive celebration, joined by Graeme’s parents, Keith and Angela, who were visiting from England for Christmas.

However, shortly before 3am, the calm of the night was shattered.

“Please, please, please read this! Our lives could have really changed!” Victoria wrote.

“After the most most amazing Christmas Day we were woke by flames.”

Earlier on Christmas Day, Graeme had cleaned out the family’s log fire — something they routinely do — and placed what appeared to be cold ashes into their brown bin.

“Graeme cleaned our fire just before 11am (we only burn logs) on Christmas morning. There was not many ashes and he put them in the brown bin as normal.”

There were no warning signs throughout the evening.

“We had been walking Elvis around the house many times during the day and there was no signs of anything to worry about last time being 1am.”

Father-in-law raised the alarm

Ring camera footage as the blaze took hold at the rear of the Nichols’ family home in Antrim

It was Graeme’s father, Keith, who first became aware something was wrong.

“Just before 3am this morning our brown bin went on fire. As many people we keep our bins beside our oil tank. My father-in-law heard a bang and got up to see what was wrong. He saw flames and woke us all.”

What he saw was terrifying.

“The oil tank that had 500 litres at least went on fire!”

The family rushed to evacuate.

“Never have I ever witnesssed anything like this! We got the girls, Elvis and my mother-in-law out of the house and took them to our unbelievably kind neighbours who we can’t thank enough.”

The Northern Ireland Fire & Rescue Service arrived swiftly.

“The Fire service were with us within 10 minutes and were phenomenal and told us we were extremely lucky.”

While waiting for firefighters, Graeme and his father took brave action.

“So bravely Graeme and my father-in-law tried their hardest to contain the fire with our garden hoses until the fire service arrived. They saved our house,” said Victoria.

“If the wind had been blowing the other way…”

The destruction following the blaze on Friday morning

Firefighters later explained the likely cause of the blaze — a warning the family now wants every household to hear.

“Please, please make sure you never put cold ashes in a brown bin because as explained by the Fire Service, the carbon monoxide had continued to build up during the day and combusted.

“We could have lost everything last night”

The family believe the outcome could have been far worse had conditions been slightly different.

Victoria explained to Love Ballymena, “if the wind had been blowing towards the house rather than away from it, the flames could have spread rapidly to the property.”

Gratitude and perspective

In the aftermath, the Nichols family have been overwhelmed by support from their local community.

“We are so so lucky and we are so grateful to our friends, builders and neighbours today for all your help. We couldn’t have done it without you!”

Despite the trauma, Victoria says the family is focusing on what matters most.

“We are holding each other all a bit tighter tonight and we really want to try and forget the scenes from last night it was horrific. It could have been so much worse but the mean thing is we are all okay!”

She paid special tribute to the man who raised the alarm in time.

“My father-in-law Keith is a true hero!”

Business owners urge caution

The clean-up

Graeme and Victoria are the owners of The Wee Village, a much-loved family business based in Doagh that offers an idyllic countryside role-play village for children aged 0–11.

This close call has highlighted the fragility of everyday routines and the unbreakable bonds of family. The Nichols, who run The Wee Village in Doagh – a enchanting role-play centre for children aged 0-11, complete with miniature shops, a construction zone, and Northern Ireland’s only outdoor play area in such a setting – have always focused on creating safe, imaginative spaces for families.

Now, they are using their experience to promote fire safety awareness, turning personal peril into a community safety message.

As the family reflects on their ordeal, they remain acutely aware of how differently events could have unfolded.

The Nichols are encouraging greater caution with household waste, particularly during the winter months when open fires are common. Their story serves as a poignant reminder of the hidden dangers lurking in post-festive clear-ups, urging households across Northern Ireland to dispose of ashes safely—ideally in a metal container away from combustible materials.

Fire safety experts echo this advice, recommending that ashes be left to cool for at least 24 hours before disposal and never placed in plastic bins or near fuel sources. Incidents like this, while rare, underscore the importance of vigilance in preventing domestic fires, which claim dozens of lives annually in the UK.