Fire alarm alerts mum just in time (The Morning Bulletin Aus) July 11, 2008

As Shantal Reynolds woke to the piercing sound of three smoke alarms, her three sons were trapped in a room filling with smoke.

The air conditioning unit in the boys' room was set ablaze, quickly filtering smoke throughout their Gracemere home.

Mrs Reynolds said it was about 11.30pm when she jumped out of bed and turned on the light. Her first instinct was the check the kitchen and dining areas.

"That was my first thought of where a fire would be but I couldn't find anything. There was smoke everywhere," she said.

"I walked up the hallway and saw a red light flickering, it was coming from the kid's room."

The entire inside of the air conditioner which was mounted in the wall was alight.

Braeth, five, Dalen, two and Hudson, 10 months, slept through the entire ordeal until they were woken by Mrs Reynolds.

"I'm lucky I left the door ajar to allow the heat from the air conditioner to filter through the rest of the house," she said.

"If it wasn't for that and the smoke alarms hadn't worked we would not be here today.

You don't necessarily think about putting smoke alarms in the bedroom."

Fire and Rescue communication safety officer Wayne Smith yesterday recommended installing smoke alarms in bedrooms if you slept with the door shut.

He also said to make sure you have a fire evacuation plan.

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