Landlord fined £20,000 after Worthing house fire
Former landlord Terry Millis admitted in court today that he put the lives of five residents of a Portland Road home at risk.
The judge said Millis, 62, of Highview in Sompting, had a ‘high level’ of culpability and fined him £20,000 for ‘failures’ in the lead up to the fire.
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Hide AdThe case relates to a blaze at a three-storey Victorian house, split into flats, on May 14 last year.
Speaking at Brighton Magistrates’ Court today, prosecutor Michael Stoneham said: “West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service received a phone call to attend a fire in Portland Road.
“The watch manager noticed smoke issuing from the building and four of the residents were stood outside the property.
“[The fire] was in the process of spreading to the loft.
“It was ascertained that there were two people trapped inside on the second floor of the property due to the stairs being smoke logged.”
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Hide AdFortunately the brave firefighters managed to rescue the two people trapped in the burning building.
Both escaped without major injury, though one was taken to hospital and treated for smoke inhalation.
Mr Stoneham added: “Mr Terry Millis did not have a fire risk assessment and was aware that the fire alarm was not in working order
“Several of the smoke detectors had the manufacturer’s dust covers still on them, rendering them non-responsive to smoke.”
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Hide AdMillis had contacted a company to repair the fire alarm two months before the fire, but the work had not been done, the court heard.
The three-storey Victorian house had been split into flats several years before, with all the flats sharing a central staircase.
The prosecutor said: “A resident explained that she had lived in the property for four years and had never heard the fire alarm sound.
“The failures to have the fire regulations in place resulted in the lives of the residents being in danger.
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