Would-be TV star From Haverhill helps prevent disaster at summer school in Cambridge
An eagle-eyed 10-year-old helped prevent a near disaster when she spotted a fire had broken out at her summer school.
Tamsin Weekes, from Haverhill, was attending the first week of a performing arts course at Coleridge Community College, in Cambridge, on Monday, when the real-life drama unfolded..
As the theatre class got under way with ‘air clapping’ – part of the ‘getting to know each other’ section – Tamsin suddenly spotted thick black smoke.
“The window was quite high up and I just shouted out: there’s smoke outside,” said Tamsin, from Strawberry Fields.
“The window was quite high up so I couldn’t see properly.
“The teachers looked shocked and we were all asked to line up to get ready for evacuation. There were nine of us in the bubble class.
“I was scared but not as scared perhaps as I would have been if I hadn’t spotted it, and someone else had pointed it out.”
The blaze took hold in the roof of the school’s gymnasium at about 10:35am. The school was evacuated with the nine theatre pupils and around 15 others meeting the car park for a roll call.
Plumes of black smoke were seen across parts of the south of Cambridge.
Six crews, plus an aerial platform crew, took about 20 minutes to bring the blaze under control. They praised staff for getting everyone out safely.
Tamsin’s dad, Ben, 49, said. “All the parents received an email saying there had been a fire but that everything was okay.
“Tamsin told me straight away when I went to pick her up at the end of the day as she didn’t realise I already know. I was proud she raised the alarm.”
Group Commander Danny Kelly from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service, said crews arrived to find ‘quite a severe fire’ but ‘quickly got on top of it’.
The fire crews, including one from Haverhill, started to leave around 12.15pm and the class resumed later. The fire was contained to solar panels on the roof area of the sports hall.
A spokesperson for the school said: “All staff and visitors on site were evacuated promptly and any damage was limited. The school is able to operate as usual.”
Tamsin added: “Classes were able to continue all week, which was great as I had really been looking forward to them.
"I’ve always wanted to do something in the performing arts, and hopefully be on TV.”