A pet cat is being hailed a hero after saving a man from his burning
home.
Engineer Andrew Williams was asleep when the fire broke out at his
bungalow in Bracknell in Berkshire.
As black smoke filled the property, his neighbour's cat Hugo came
through a cat-flap and raised the alarm by clawing at the
father-of-two' s face.
Rescuers said that the fire could have killed Mr Williams if he had
not been awoken by Hugo. A smoke detector had been moved during work
on the bungalow.
The fire, which broke out at the family home in Birch Hill at about
0200 BST on 1 August, was caused by an electrical fault.
" The fire chief said that I had better buy the cat a big piece of
fish because he saved my life "
Mr Williams had removed a smoke detector from his ceiling while
decorating and moved it to a different place. It only activated
after he had been woken up.
He said he then went into "autopilot", calling the fire service and
trying to put out the blaze himself.
Mr Williams, whose wife Sarah was visiting her sister at the time,
was treated at the scene after breathing in smoke.
Hugo and his brother Harvey are regular visitors to the cat lover's
home.
Mr Williams said: "I was woken up with Hugo sitting on top of me
clawing at my face. He was trying to wake me up.
"The fire chief said that I had better buy the cat a big piece of
fish because he saved my life.
"I'm just so thankful to that little fella."
A spokesman for Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue said: "We are
delighted that this very fire-aware cat was able to alert the family
on this occasion.
"This just highlights the importance of having working smoke
detectors inside your home."
