The owner of a pet food shop in Northampton said the quick-thinking of firefighters helped save her business from being burned to the ground.
Yvonne Hamson, who runs Pets Pantry, in Collingwood Road, Abington, expressed her gratitude to Northants Fire & Rescue after they managed to extinguish a blaze in the flat above her business before it damaged her shop.
Ms Hamson was alerted to the fire on Wednesday, January 29, at about 7pm when she was told by a friend that Collingwood Road was closed.
The shopkeeper went to check on her business and saw the firefighters outside.
Ms Hamson handed over her keys to firefighters and they quickly entered the property, turned off the electricity supply and put absorbent sheets under her ceiling to collect any water seeping through, that was being used to douse the flames upstairs.
Ms Hamson said: “They saved my shop. It could have been so much worse if it wasn’t for their quick actions.
“They moved all the stock out of the way and put sheets up which protected the shop.
“It was very scary for me to see all the fire engines outside the shop as I didn’t know until I got there that the fire was upstairs.”
A 34-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of arson following a fire in the flat above the pet shop.
The fire was believed to have started sometime between 7pm and 8pm.
A man from Northampton has been released on bail pending further enquiries.
Witnesses to the fire, or anyone with information, can call Northamptonshire Police on 101.
