Maria's Story Continued 14

I was called down to the main desk at work one day because a traffic warden wanted to speak to me. I wondered what I had done wrong and I racked my brains but could think of nothing but you can imagine the jibes I was getting like what have you been up to. I came down and the traffic warden was in a room she told me the police had sent her down because there had been a major incident at my daughters house there had been a fire. I flew out of work the police had sent the traffic warden down because they were busy at the fire with the fire engines and paramedics. When I arrived at my daughters house the two youngest children were on the grass and the paramedics were fighting with their little lives. I just openly broke down at this point and the two young children were rushed to hospital .When I arrived there they were in the emergency room for two and half hours before they were taken up to the ward. I have to thank the emergency team at the hospital who gave it their all and I will be forever grateful to those nurses and doctors for what they had done to save the little ones. My daughter was in a hysterical state so I had to be strong for her benefit to comfort her. When we arrived up on the ward the little girl was in a bad way and was on pure oxygen because of the amount of smoke damage she had taken in a lot and the little lad had burn marks on his hands which he still has today but he had to undergo painful skin grafts etc. for a while afterword. It turned out that the oldest lad had found some matches and was playing with them they were announcing it on the local radio and TV appealing for help as my daughter lost every thing the house was gutted and she was not would you believe insured. The appeal worked very well I was stunned at the amount of clothes, toys, dishes etc that when people heard their kindness and generosity knew no bounds and I thank them for that as it helped a great deal. We nearly lost the two younger children through that fire. The family in Scotland helped a good deal as well every one seemed to rally round on our behalf. The nursery where one of the children went to had put up an appeal for help and they were inundated with help to our family at this time. The nursery could not help enough looking after the older boy while we went up the hospital and any other time we needed them I cannot thank them enough and they did not charge us either which helped a great deal. My daughter was in a terrible state during this time all the usual emotions like blaming herself. A lot of mothers did say there for the grace of god go they. They told us it could have happened to any one of them. My daughter did not have smoke alarms fitted in that house but she has now. The children have fully recovered now but the little lad still has scar marks on his hands but they are perfect in every way. My daughter told me later the older child who started the fire had the sense to run upstairs and shut his bedroom door and did not come out. My daughter was hysterical and she run out on the street she lived on shouting for some one to help as her children were trapped inside and she could not get to them they were asleep at the time it happened. There was a carpet fitter across the road who heard her screams rounded up his ladders and smashed the windows were the children were and he saved their young lives I thank him for that and will be eternally grateful to him and he did visit the children in hospital a couple of day's later. When we went up to thank him personally later on, my daughter and I he said he only did what any one else would have done he just wanted to get the children out so we owe the children's young lives to him he saved them. So he was relieved to hear they were out of danger as they were in danger for two or three days they looked so pitiful and it made me realise how close we came to losing them but they are healthy and fit now full of mischief like all children are they are lovely and I would not have them any other way. My daughter is now settled down with a very nice and caring man and has been together with him for the last five years. The children adore him and you can see they all love him. He did not have any children when he met my daughter of his own. He was single but I admire how he took on my grandchildren all three of them and I do not think it could have been easy for a minute to have a ready made family. He had always liked my daughter and when she had split up from Duncan he asked her out and things developed from that first date.

I do admire him and I know she is happy with him and the children are also which is the most important thing. They had another three children but his first child died and they were so distraught thinking they were at fault. I was there for support for them and it was a really difficult time especially for my daughter's partner because all he kept saying was it must be something wrong with him as she already had three healthy children so I had to calm his fears on that one and tell him it was not anything to do with him and that sometimes life is cruel and these things do happen at times but it was not through anyone's fault. They had all the tests done before they had any more children but they were all clear the doctors said it was just one of those things. As a family we do not forget about little Chantelle and every April we go and place flowers at the commentary where her young body is at rest even the children come also and as a family Chantelle is always remembered. They went on and had two further children after Chantelle passed on they had a girl and a boy and are very happy as a couple...

My daughter gave birth to a baby girl on the 7th December 2001 and her name is Charlotte Nicole both mother and baby are well and Charlotte weighed in at 8lbs 3ozs....

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