‘Something told me to go back’: Mum’s split-second decision before devastating Carnlough house fire

A Carnlough mum who had already left for work when she heard a bang and decided to turn back has described the terrifying moments she discovered her home on fire — with her daughter and partner still asleep upstairs.

Mandy Abram had walked down the path from her home at around 7.20am on Wednesday 26 August when she heard what she initially thought was a car backfiring.

There was nobody around.

Something, she says, told her to go back.

Moments later, Mandy was inside desperately screaming to wake her family as fire spread through the kitchen.

Her partner Darren and daughter Caitlin escaped unharmed, along with the family’s two dogs, but their home has been devastated and virtually everything they owned destroyed.

Mandy believes the blaze began when a battery pack used for an electric scooter exploded in the kitchen. She says it was sitting on the kitchen table and was not switched on, connected or charging at the time.

Her son Alfie was staying at his girlfriend’s home when the fire broke out, but everything he owned was inside his bedroom.

‘Something told me to go back and check’

Mandy had got ready for work as normal that Wednesday morning before collecting her coat and handbag and leaving.

“When I left the house and walked down my path, I heard a bang. I actually thought a car had backfired, but when I looked around there was no one and no cars about.

“It was 7.20am. I questioned myself, wondering if it came from the house, and something told me to go back and check, which I did.”

When she walked back through the front door and down the hall, Mandy realised something was seriously wrong.

She said the battery pack from an electric scooter had exploded in the kitchen.

“I started to scream ‘out’ as everyone was in bed sleeping. I was hoping my daughter would hear as she was in the bedroom above.”

Mandy keeps fire extinguishers in her home and immediately tried to tackle the blaze.

But she said the fire repeatedly reignited.

“I quickly grabbed one and tried so hard to put it out, but it just kept relighting and spitting — like hot lava is the only way to describe it — all around the kitchen, setting everything alight in its path.”

A decision at the bottom of the stairs

With Caitlin and Darren still upstairs and the fire spreading, Mandy was faced with a terrifying decision.

“I remember looking at the stairs and thinking, if I run up to wake them up, we are all not getting out.

“So I screamed as loud as I could. By then the fire alarms had started, so my daughter woke and I was able to say the house was on fire.”

Mandy managed to get the family’s two dogs out through the back door.

Darren then came downstairs and attempted to tackle the blaze with the remaining fire extinguishers.

But the fire was spreading too quickly.

“The house was going up very quickly at this point and we had to get out,” Mandy said.

“I managed to escape through the back as I couldn’t get down the hall, and he was able to get my daughter out through the front.

“They were literally out the front door and no more when the whole house went up, then seconds later the windows blew.”

Mandy said firefighters who attended the incident told her that had she not turned around and gone back after hearing the bang, the outcome could have been very different.

“So we are very, very lucky,” she said.

‘An image I’ll never unsee’

The family escaped, but Mandy said the experience of standing downstairs knowing her loved ones were still above her will remain with her.

“Watching your house go on fire while trying to wake your family, knowing you won’t make it upstairs, is an image I’ll never unsee.

“And standing in the street watching your house burn is heartbreaking.”

Neighbours Katrina Daly and Siobhan Johnston heard Mandy’s screams for help and came to the family’s aid.

In the days since, they have continued supporting Mandy and Darren and have launched an online fundraiser to help the family rebuild their lives.

Mandy said the response from people in Carnlough and further afield had been overwhelming.

“I want to say a massive thank you to everyone in Carnlough and beyond for their generosity.

“Me and Darren are blown away by the support received from you all — and not just that, but the messages of support and the things people have dropped off. I appreciate all of it.”

But behind that gratitude is the reality of what the family now faces.

“We are homeless and don’t own a sock between us. All we have is the clothes on our backs, but we are so grateful to be here.”

‘Each day has just gotten harder’

Mandy said the emotional impact of the fire has become more difficult as the days have passed.

“To say I’m not heartbroken would be a lie and each day has just gotten harder, but I have to remind myself that we are all here by the skin of our teeth.

“But me, Darren and Caitlin are here and that’s a blessing.”

Alfie escaped the terrifying experience of being inside the house because he was staying elsewhere, but his possessions were not spared.

“Everything he ever owned was in his room, from his clothes to his personal things — basically his whole life of things.

“We may be homeless and just left with the clothes on our backs, but we are all so very lucky.”

Mum issues warning over scooter batteries

Mandy is now urging other families who keep electric scooters or similar battery-powered devices at home to be aware of the potential fire risk.

She stressed that the battery pack she believes was involved in the blaze was not being charged when the fire started.

“I’m warning everyone that has a child with an electric scooter or any of these types of things to please, please do not keep them in your home.

“This was a battery pack that charges an electric scooter. Not connected, not charging, not switched on — nothing.

“I never want any family to go through what we are. Our whole home is in ruins.”

More than £8,000 raised to help family start again

Neighbours Siobhan and Katrina have established a GoFundMe appeal to help Mandy, Darren and their family replace what they have lost.

They said: “We are really hoping to raise some money for our neighbours. We live on either side of Mandy and Darren and on Wednesday 26 August their house caught fire and is completely ruined.

“Absolutely everything is destroyed, they only have the clothes on their backs. As devastating as it is, Mandy, Darren and Caitlin are lucky to have got out unharmed.

“Let’s dig deep and try to make life a bit easier for them while they are having to start from scratch. Any donations will go towards helping them to rebuild everything they have sadly lost.

“We know people are getting it tight at the minute, so any donation is greatly appreciated.”

The appeal has already raised £8,491 as friends, neighbours and people from across the wider community rally around the family.

For Mandy, Darren, Caitlin and Alfie, replacing a lifetime of possessions will take time.

But amid the devastation, Mandy keeps returning to what matters most: on a morning when she had already walked away from the house, she turned around.

Her family got out.

And, as she puts it, “we are all here by the skin of our teeth”.

Donations to support the family can be made at:

Donate here via GoFundMe