Marie and Jordan Phillips with Lexy pictured outside the remains of their home. Pic: Jim Campbell

A LOCAL family has been left homeless after a savage fire engulfed their home, destroying everything within but said they were heartened by the support they have received from the local community.

Marie Phillips from Antelope Road, Maudlintown was at home with her son Jordan and daughter Jody when her sitting room began to fill with smoke at around 10 p.m. She opened the window but the smoke got worse and she went outside to check her chimney, fearing that it could have been blocked.

“The chimney was fine so I went back inside but the smoke was still bad so I went out and a friend was passing by, Marion Cullen, and she went in for a look. Next thing I heard her shouting to call the fire brigade because my house was on fire. She was only just out the front door when I saw the flames take off in the hallway behind her.

“In less than five minutes the house was up in flames.”

She described the incident as a terrifying ordeal, saying that only for her friend Marion she would probably still have been in the house trying to figure out what the problem was. She added that the fire seemed to have exploded from a press where the house piping and electrical wires are located.

More terrifying again for the young mother was the sight of her son Jordan who, on realising that their dog Lexi was still in the back garden, where the fire was raging, jumped a neighbouring wall to rescue the family pet.

Since Thursday night, the family has been staying with Marie’s brother who lives a few doors up but she expressed her hope that the council would assist her in finding someplace for them to live.

“We’ve lived there for 12 years and everything I had is gone. Jody is doing her Junior Cert and all of her books and things are destroyed. It takes a lifetime to build a home and just a few minutes to tear it down.”

But she said the tight-knit community in Maudlintown had rallied behind her with people offering help and support: “The thought of having to live somewhere else is killing me because this place is home. Everyone has pulled together to help us.

Two units of Wexford Fire Brigade attended the scene while another unit from Enniscorthy was also called in to assist. It is understood that issues with water pressure in the area resulted in a water tanker being dispatched as well.

A spokesperson for Wexford Fire Service said that the fire was suspected to have been an accidental electrical fire.

The fire brigade fought the blaze for nearly six hours before finally bringing it under control. Two neighbouring houses on either side of the destroyed building suffered smoke and water damage.

The spokesperson remarked that while fire could spread quickly from building to building, the construction of these houses, along with a quick response from the fire brigade had helped to minimise damage to the neighbouring buildings.