Woman calls 999 as cannabis catches fire

A WOMAN rang 999 complaining that her cannabis plants were on fire, firefighters in South Yorkshire revealed yesterday.

They said that the woman, from Grimesthorpe in Sheffield, called the fire service after plants she was growing in her bedroom caught fire. She was handed a police caution.

The revelation came as South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue released new statistics showing a huge increase in the number of fires caused by equipment used to grow cannabis.

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The service said such fires posed a “massively increased danger” to firefighters.

Fire investigator Andy Strelczenie said yesterday: “So far this year around seven per cent of the house fires we’ve attended have turned out to be cannabis factories.

“This may not seem like a huge number but you need to consider that these incidents are much more dangerous to deal with than standard house fires.

“From the outside it looks like a normal house but inside walls and ceilings have been ripped out, the electricity meter has been by-passed and the houses are full of different chemicals.

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“All these elements add up to a much more hazardous environment for the responding fire crews, and local residents.”

Inspector Paul Ferguson, who leads the east Sheffield safer neighbourhood teams, added: “When we execute drugs warrants and find cannabis factories, we often see dangerous living conditions.

“It is amazing the lengths people will go to in order to grow cannabis, putting their life on the line to engage in criminal activity.”

Statistics released by the fire service show that in the 2009 financial year there were 697 accidental house fires in South Yorkshire, of which six – or 0.9 per cent – were caused by cannabis-growing equipment.

However, since just April this year, there have been five cannabis-related house fires, accounting for 6.7 per cent of total accidental blazes.