A COMMUNITY appeal has been launched after a residential fire on Newport Close in Callington destroyed a family home.

Fire crews from Callington and Saltash were called out to the fire at just past 2pm on Thursday, July 4.

Due to the extent of the smoke and fire, the crew called for reinforcements.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus used hose reel jets to fight the blaze and prevent it spreading to nearby properties.

Their prompt actions prevented the fire spreading from the property, however it was severely damaged - including water damage below ground level.

Fortunately, nobody was harmed – with everybody making it out safely.

Callington Community Fire Station said this was due to working fire alarms in the house.

Members of the community are now rallying together to help the family whose house has been burnt out.

Sam Wood, a neighbour, saw the whole thing unfold: “We literally came home that day and couldn’t go down to our home because of all the fire brigade.”

“We noticed a lot of our neighbours in the car park, as we are a close knit community around here. My husband and I went around asking if everyone was okay, and we noticed the woman stood outside in just the clothes she had on.”

“I went to mine to grab her some slippers and a drink.”

Later that night, Sam and her friend, Emma Smart, decided to post a plea on social media for help on behalf of the victims.

“We’ve had so many responses, it would be hard to put a number on it,” she said.

“Trina Tucker has also shared a post on the Saltash page, and our local police have also started a collection for us as Emma and I didn’t realise how much community support we would get.

“It’s been amazing, and the affected family are so grateful for every single donation they have had so far.”