Ewe will be surprised at this Barn Fire

Firefighters rescue new born lambs from Malpas barn fire

Cheshire firefighters tackled the fire whilst Shropshire crews delivered oxygen to new borns lambs and their mother, saving their lives.

Firefighters from Malpas and Whitchurch helped deliver two lambs after putting out a fire in a barn on Higher Wych Road in Wigland, Malpas.

It was a family affair as mother and son firefighters Margot and Giles Davies and father and son Mark and Simon Spenatti tackled the fire in a barn which was home to a number of sheep, including one which had just given birth.

Some of the animals managed to escape from the barn in time but the ewe and her two lambs lay immobile in the doorway, in the path of the smoke and fumes, their oxygen levels running low.

One firefighting team used a hose reel jet and a thermal imaging camera to bring the fire under control whilst others rushed to help the sheep and her lambs.

Incident commander Paul Williams said; "When we arrived, the barn was on fire and the farmer told us the ewe and her lambs were still inside.

We went in to deal with the fire before other crews followed with the farmer.
With the use of oxygen masks, firefighters were able to deliver life saving oxygen to the ewe and her lambs.

"Once we had put out the fire, we were able to watch as Firefighters Robinson, Dutton and Griffiths helped the farmer to deliver the lambs.

We were thrilled to see the three of them were up and about before we left.

"As Malpas is a rural area, animal rescues aren't anything out of ordinary but we're always really pleased to play our part."

The fire is believed to have been caused accidentally, started by the heat from a heat lamp.