FOUR people had to be rescued from a ‘suspicious’ blaze at a block of flats in Enniskillen on Saturday morning, the second fire at the complex in a matter of weeks.
The incident at an unoccupied ground floor flat was reported at about 4.30am. 
Firefighters arrived to find “toxic smoke” bellowing from the property and the man who alerted the emergency services to the fire was treated for smoke inhalation at the scene. 
He was discovered in the hallway opposite a flat where last month a mattress was propped up against the window and deliberately set on fire.
Station Commander Jim McClintock said the fire was “well developed” on the arrival of his crew. 
“A lot of toxic fumes had entered into the common stairway and that had trapped people on the ground of the first floor flat. The fire spread was limited due to the concrete construction. 
“We got people who were relatively safe to stay in their flat and close the windows until we got further resources to get them down to a place of safety,” he told The Impartial Reporter.
A number of the flats are unoccupied and boarded up. 
“They are secured by the Housing Executive so they are very difficult to gain access to and to ventilate because you can’t open windows or door so smoke clearance is a big issue there,” said Mr. McClintock. 
He offered this advice to anyone who may experience fire: “We advise to call 999 and if possible get out and stay out and make yourself known to the emergency services when they come so we can do a headcount.
Mr. McClintock praised his colleagues, many of whom live in the local area, for their “quick action” in stopping the escalation of the fire.
“Anyone who would have tried to extinguish that fire would have got into a lot bother: there was intense heat, it was an intense fire in a small built up area, it was very hot and there was a lot of toxic smoke,” he said. 
A joint investigation has been carried out by the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and the Police Service of Northern Ireland and while there is no evidence to suggest that the fire was deliberate, Mr. McClintock said it is being treated “as suspicious” due to recent incidents in the area.
“We treat every fire as we find it but certainly the longer this goes on it’s only a matter of time before we are going to have a serious injury or a possible loss of life,” he said.