Firefighters ‘safely rescued’ all the animals from an Oxford pet store after a fire broke out on Tuesday afternoon (July 11).
Rabbits and other small animals were evacuated from Pets at Home in Cowley after fire crews tackled a blaze at the rear of the store.
Two fire engines from Slade Park Fire Station and one from Rewley Road Fire Station were called to multiple reports of a fire at the John Allen Centre retail park at 3.30pm.
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The crews arrived to find a fire developing at the rear of the pet store. Two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus quickly extinguished the flames using hose reel jets.
But the smoke from the fire still posed a danger to the animals trapped inside the store. With additional crews arriving, positive pressure fans were used to clear the smoke and provide vital air to the animals.
Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus were then sent in and transferred the animals into portable cages before bringing them to the staff outside.
Incident commander, Henri Ind, who is also crew manager, said: “The staff had done an excellent job evacuating the store and rescuing as many animals as they could safely.
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"This allowed us to focus on extinguishing the fire and stopping it from spreading to neighbouring properties. We evacuated the surrounding retail units as a precaution as the smoke travel between these were extensive.
“We're also pleased to say that all the animals were safely rescued and, after a stressful few hours, are now back in their homes, being cared for by the staff.”
Stores in the retail park include Sainsbury’s, Pure Gym, Pets at Home, KFC, Asda, Lidl, and TK Maxx.
Caroline Mccormack from Pure Gym said: “Fire crews were bringing out the smaller animals from Pets at Home, passing them to staff members to put into cages and evacuating all the stores surrounding the pet shop.
“The fire crews hadn’t started letting workers back into the shops when I left. You could smell smoke but I couldn’t see any visible signs of fire from the outside.”
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By 6pm, the fire crews had begun to reel in their hoses with the situation seemingly resolved, and the fire engines departed soon after.
Pets at Home were forced to close the store for the evening and said those with appointments would have to contact the store the next day to rebook.
A company statement said: “We apologise for the inconvenience.”
The day after the fire, the pet store temporarily stopped shoppers from entering the premises.
Instead, staff offered a ‘personal shopper’ service - taking orders at the door and retrieving the items for shoppers.
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