Bitterne Road West fire: Father-of-two 'just glad to be alive'

Leonardo Carvalho, 49, escaped the incident on Bitterne Road West when he first noticed the smell of smoke from his studio flat.

Though the fire hadn't started in his property, Leonardo left the scene and was stopped from re-entering by the fire service. 

Emergency services were called just before 4pm with the road remaining closed for hours as firefighters battled to extinguish the blaze. 

READ MORE: Bitterne Road West closed in both directions as firefighters battle house blaze

But now the lorry driver, who moved to the UK in 2007 from Brazil, fears that there may be smoke damage. 

He told the Echo: "I was in my room watching TV and saw the smoke coming from the window from the outside.

“I thought it was in one of the other flats, I grabbed everything I could and I ran out of the house, taking with me a box of documents which I needed and two pairs of trainers which I bought today which cost me a lot of money.

“My intention was to go back in and take more but then I realised there may be other people in the other flats so I started banging on every door to try to get the attention of the other residents. 

“Luckily, my flat's roof is intact. It's the other side of the building that the roof collapsed.

"A couple of people have said I don't look stressed, but what am I going to do? Get desperate? No... I am just glad to be alive.”

Smoke coming from the property in Bitterne (Image: NQ, Jose Ramos)

Leonardo believes his flat has narrowly escaped the blaze which caused the collapse of a roof before spreading to two adjacent properties.

He added: “I am okay. The only thing I am worried about is whether I will be able to let in because I have to get up at 3am on Monday morning and tomorrow is Sunday so let’s see what happens.”

The blaze took hold in the loft of an end of the terrace house at the junction of Rampart Road and Bitterne Road West on Saturday afternoon.

Crews from Eastleigh, Hardley, Hightown, St Mary's and Wickham raced to the scene just before 5pm, leading to the closure of the busy main road between Northam Bridge and Bullar Road and Athelstan Road.

Firefighters tackling fire in Bitterne (Image: NQ, Jose Ramos)

Crews used breathing apparatus, main jets, hose reel jets and ultra high-pressure lances to tackle the blaze and prevent fire spread.

As of 7pm, the fire appeared to have been out but the road remained closed throughout the evening.

Other residents looked on while firefighters scrambled to save the rest of the adjoining properties.

A fire service spokesperson said emergency services were first called at 3.55pm after the fire started in the loft space of the property. 

Residents were told to avoid the area due to ongoing road closures and to keep windows and doors closed due to the smoke. 

One neighbour told the Echo: "It's heartbreaking. We just saw the firefighters arrive at 4pm and we decided to see what was happening. 

"What do you do in that moment? What do you grab when it's your whole life in a house. 

"It's really sad."