A MOTHER-OF-TWO had to grab her children and flee her home after a faulty washing machine exploded into flames during the night.

Kelly Thomas, 33, was in her living room when the she saw smoke coming through the kitchen door at her home in Acre Avenue in Stacksteads.

Her six-year-old son and 15-year-old daughter were asleep upstairs at the time, but escaped unharmed.

Miss Thomas, a student, has been left without electricity or gas after the fire tore through her kitchen, causing severe smoke damage.

She suffered from smoke inhalation but did not need hospital treatment.

Nine firefighters from Bacup attended the incident at around 12.30am yesterday morning and spent almost an hour tackling the flames.Miss Thomas, originally from Haslingden, said that without a working smoke alarm there might have been tragic consequences for her family.

She said: “If I hadn’t been awake we might not have made it. Luckily I was awake doing college work and thought it smelled a bit funny.

“Then I saw the smoke coming through the door and the smoke alarm came on.

“I ran straight upstairs to get the kids out then went into the kitchen to get the two cats.

“I won’t be leaving the washer on unattended again, I’m just glad everyone’s okay. I have home insurance but the contents are not covered. Most of the kids’ clothes have been destroyed. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Three of the family’s goldfish died after their tank broke down as a result of the home’s electricity being cut off.

The children are currently staying with their grandmother while Miss Thomas waits for her landlords, Green Vale Homes, to assess the damage to the kitchen.

Chris Howarth, watch manager at Bacup Fire Station, said: “I would like to stress the importance of turning off and unplugging electrical appliances at night.

“If this family didn’t have smoke alarms, this could have been so much worse.”