A DORCHESTER couple had a lucky escape after fire broke out in their home.

Iain and Anne Harborow said that a blaze at their home ‘could have been a lot worse’ if it weren’t for their smoke alarms and the response Dorset Fire and Rescue Service.

The couple, of Colliton Street, thanked the firefighters who extinguished the dishwasher blaze at their home yesterday morning and saved their cats from the house.

Mr Harborow, 65, had been at home with the couple’s three cats Beano, 10, Sampson, 19, and Tia, 14, when he heard the fire alarm going.

He said: “We would urge people to make sure their fire alarms are working and checked – it could have been so much worse without them.”

Mr Harborow went to investigate and found smoke billowing.

He said: “I saw the smoke coming through from the kitchen. I found the dishwasher on fire, so I called the fire brigade, got my coat and key and went outside.”

Mr Harborow closed all the internal doors and unplugged the dishwasher before he went.

He said: “There were flames a couple of feet high coming from the front of the dishwasher.”

Two fire crews quickly arrived and asked Mr Harborow if anyone was in the house.

He said: “I said no – but there were three cats.”

Mr Harborow added: “The crew went in with breathing apparatus and they got the cats out.”

Mr Harborow paid tribute to the professional work of fire crews at the scene.

He added: “We are very grateful to the firefighters for their speed and efficiency and for doing a very professional job.”

Mrs Harborow, 63, had been out at the time and returned home to find the fire engines outside.

She said: “They were very professional.”

The fire caused damage to the kitchen and smoke damage to the kitchen, pantry and the office.

The couple urged others to make sure they had fitted smoke detectors that were working. Mrs Harborow said: “We can’t emphasis enough the importance of having working fire alarms.”

She added: “They save lives.”

Mr Harborow said: “Without the smoke detectors, God knows what could have happened.”

The couple said that they were all right and that the cats had been a bit disorientated at first but seemed to be ok.

Dorset Fire and Rescue service said they had been called to the incident at 11.30am and confirmed that the dishwasher was destroyed by the fire.