Blaze beaten

By Bridget Brady
The 13-year-old Cranbourne boy was riding his bike with a friend on 5 January when he heard a smoke alarm at a nearby house on Parkstone Vista.
After smelling the smoke, he knocked on the door and when he realised nobody was home, he decided to call Triple-zero.
“I said to my mate, ‘I’m going to call the fire brigade.’ He said ‘but what if it’s nothing’, and I said: ‘but what if it is,’?” Nathan said.
“I just thought, someone’s house might be in a bit of trouble and they might not have a house to come home to tonight.”
Nathan’s gut feeling was right, and the fire brigade arrived to find an unattended pot of food left cooking on the stove.
Senior station officer at Cranbourne Fire Brigade Phil Charles said the house was filled with smoke, and Nathan’s actions prevented further damage. The brigade presented Nathan with a certificate on Monday to thank him for using his initiative.
“He was a bit apprehensive, but he has made the right decision,” Mr Charles said.
Nathan said he was pleased the fire brigade had thanked him for his actions.
His mother, Winifred, thanked the brigade for reassuring Nathan during and after the incident.
“He was really unsure about what to do and the brigade was fantastic,” she said.