On February 24, Ishia Thomas’ family home on Green Wrythe Lane caught fire and caused damage to the downstairs area.
Much of the house suffered from a lot of smoke damage, and the family, including her mum who suffers from mental health issues, were forced to move out of the house for the sake of their health.
The 29-year-old bus driver told Your Local Guardian: “My dad was at work, and my mum was at her mental health meeting on the day.
“My neighbour could smell smoke and could hear my dog barking, so she went next door.
“There was a knock on the door, and nobody was home, but she managed to get another gentleman’s help to get the door open to get my dog and cat out of the house.
“My neighbour contacted my mum, and when she came back, the house was in flames.
“It was absolutely devastating.”
The home is currently boarded up.
Firefighters told Ishia that a plug in the wall caused the fire, and the cause has been classed as an electrical fire.
The family are currently staying at a Premier Inn hotel, but their stay has been extended several times as the authorities try to find temporary accommodation so they can renovate and restore the house.
Nobody was hurt in the fire, including the pets.
Ishia said: “The pets were okay, although my old cat did get upstairs and suffered quite a bit of smoke damage and smoke insulation.
“So, she was at the vet for a few days.
“At the moment, she’s staying with family, because you can’t have cats in the hotel.”
The fire destroyed many materialistic items which meant a lot to the family.
Ishia added: “A lot of sentimental stuff got damaged by the fire.
“A lot of furniture downstairs was obviously ruined, but my mum’s more affected because it was a safe space for her mental health.
“Her home is her pride.”
Ishia has launched a fundraiser to help her family get through this difficult time.
She aims to raise £10,000, much of it to help her 56-year-old mother Maxime.
As of March 20, £170 has been raised.
Ishia said: “As her daughter and her carer, I’m finding it really hard to help her through this difficult time as we will have to start again with the house.
“I’m hoping to raise some money to help put a smile on her face again to make our damaged house a home again.”
Maxime said: “The biggest struggle is a lifetime of memories gone.
“I think of going to get something, and it hurts all over again—the realisation that I can’t.
“I create due to my mental health, but it’s all gone.”
Anyone can donate to the Thomas family on the GoFundMe website.
