Panto stars make bow in fire safety campaign

The fire service is trying to prevent the traditional spike in accidental house fires which occurs in December.

Mr Latchford-Evans, who is playing the Prince in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, joined co-stars Ben Nickless and Stephanie Dooley to meet the crew from Maltby fire station and find out about their work.

He said: "Christmas is a time for celebration, but we're really keen to do anything we can to raise awareness of the fire service's important safety messages, so everyone can have as safe and as happy a Christmas as possible."

Hazards usually associated with house fires at Christmas include cooking, candles, fairy lights and dry Christmas trees.

Steve Makepeace, head of community safety at South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, said: "The risk of fire in the home is an all year round issue, but people are particularly vulnerable at Christmas for reasons ranging from unsafe electrical decorations and unattended candles to cooking whilst under the influence of alcohol.

"People also vastly underestimate the deadly strength of toxic smoke and overestimate how long they have to escape should a fire break out.

"The reality is that just two to three breaths of smoke in a fire can render a person unconscious. Christmas should be a time for celebration rather than tragedy and for this reason I'm urging people to be fire aware and stay fire safe."

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue also handed out 15 "Long Service and Good Conduct" medals to staff at a ceremony on Wednesday. Chief fire officer Mark Smitherman said he was "extremely proud" to present the medals to staff who have spent 20 years working at the fire service.