Firefighter beaten over the head by resident whose home he was trying to save from being engulfed in flames

A firefighter was beaten over the head by the resident of flats he was trying to save – and only his helmet saved him suffering serious head injuries.

Crews arrived at the blaze in Kensington Avenue in Thornton Heath, minutes after midnight last night and attempted to enter the building to put out the flames – only to be attacked by a resident.

London Fire Brigade Deputy Commissioner Richard Mills said: “This abhorrent and unprovoked attack on a firefighter is completely unacceptable, but during a global pandemic when all emergency services workers are going above and beyond to serve the public it is even more shocking.

“The firefighter was going into a building to fight a fire and potentially save lives and had it not been for his helmet, he would have sustained serious head injuries. Thankfully, he has been discharged from hospital.

“We take all attacks on our firefighters incredibly seriously and have already put our weight behind the Assaults on Emergency Workers Act which increased sentencing guidelines for such attacks and we will be working with the Metropolitan Police Service to assist with their investigation.”

Four fire engines and around 25 firefighters were called to the fire. Part of a flat on the first floor of a two-storey block was damaged by the blaze.

The brigade was called at 12.02am (Tuesday 26th) and the fire was under control by 1.37am. Fire crews from Norbury and West Norwood fire stations were at the scene.

The cause of the fire is under investigation by the brigade and the Metropolitan Police Service.