Two adults escaped a Kings Avenue house before crews arrived and went to Royal Stoke with burns. Part of the first floor fell in as firefighters searched.
Two adults were taken to hospital with burns after a fire in a terraced house on Kings Avenue in Market Drayton in the early hours of Wednesday 7 October. Both had escaped before the first fire engine arrived.
The call came in at 00:41, according to Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log. It was recorded as a house fire with people reported inside. Seven appliances and a team of officers, including fire investigators, were sent.
What the fire service said
The service’s statement was carried by BBC News and Shropshire Live. In it, the service said:
- crews found flames and thick smoke coming from the ground-floor windows and front door of the two-storey, mid-terrace house
- the two adults had already got out and were being looked after by members of the public and West Mercia Police officers
- both were taken by West Midlands Ambulance Service to the Royal Stoke University Hospital in Stoke-on-Trent, with burns and the effects of smoke inhalation
- firefighters in breathing apparatus went in to search, because they believed others might still be trapped
- part of the first floor gave way and collapsed into the ground floor while they were inside
- searches confirmed nobody else was in the house
- the fire was under control about an hour after crews arrived
A spokesperson said firefighters had worked “extremely hard in punishing temperatures as they made their way through the property”, the BBC reported.
The house was badly damaged. Neighbouring homes had smoke in their roof spaces and upper floors, but the fire did not spread to them. Crews stayed overnight to watch for hot spots, and fire investigators are working to establish the cause. The service has not said what started it.
How big the response was
The incident log lists crews from Market Drayton, Hodnet, Newport, Telford Central and Whitchurch, plus a crew from over the county border. The service’s statement names Loggerheads, in Staffordshire.
The log records:
- an aerial ladder platform and an incident command unit
- fourteen sets of breathing apparatus used
- three hose reel jets, a high pressure jet and a covering jet
The service said the incident commander called for more help as the fire grew more severe, while separate teams checked the roof spaces of the neighbouring homes.
How often this happens
House fires are not rare across the county. The same public log lists 113 incidents recorded as house fires in Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin between January and September 2026. Six of those were logged, like this one, as house fires with people reported inside.
The monthly figures from the incident log are:
| Month | House fires logged |
|---|---|
| January | 16 |
| February | 13 |
| March | 9 |
| April | 15 |
| May | 12 |
| June | 12 |
| July | 18 |
| August | 11 |
| September | 7 |
On the Market Drayton station’s own patch, the log shows four house fires so far this year, Kings Avenue included. The months are counted by the date each record was logged, which can be a few hours after the call.
What it means for you
The two people on Kings Avenue got out before crews arrived. That is what working smoke alarms and a planned way out are for.
- Test your smoke alarms once a month. The service’s smoke alarm advice covers where to fit them.
- Book a free Safe and Well visit. Firefighters will come to your home, test your alarms and talk through an escape plan. Call 01743 260 260 or see the Safe and Well page. There is also a 15-minute online home fire safety check on the same page.
For the service’s wider picture, see our report on the fire inspectorate’s July revisit.
We will update this page if the fire service publishes the cause.
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