Six-year-old saved by hero brother after phone charger causes bedroom blaze

Donnacha McCauley, aged 6, is lucky to have escaped with minor injuries after the terrifying incident at the family home in Ramelton And but for the heroic actions of his older brother Dualtach, 15, the situation could have been much worse.

A young Donegal boy has been left with burns after a phone charger caught fire in his bedroom and almost set his entire family's home on fire.

Donnacha McCauley, aged 6, is lucky to have escaped with minor injuries after the terrifying incident at the family home in Ramelton. 

If it wasn't for the heroic actions of his older brother Dualtach, 15, the situation could have been much worse.

Mother Nicola McCauley said she and her husband were about to head to bed when she heard a scream and their son Dualtach shouting her name. 

"He woke up when Donnacha cried and saw flames so he jumped from the top bunk and pulled Donnacha out of the bottom bunk bed which was on fire.

"I screamed to get the rest of the house up and out and Ryan started pouring water on it. We luckily had a fire extinguisher in the kitchen so I ran to get that."

Donnacha with his mum Nicola, who has appealed to others to ensure chargers are not left plugged in when not in use.

Nicola says that within just 30 seconds the room was filled with smoke and flames, but they were able to extinguish the blaze.

The parents discovered that Donnacha had suffered a number of burns and took him to Letterkenny University Hospital immediately. 

Nicola said "He has burns to his head, hand, toes, and leg but thankfully nothing too bad and he is now home."

The couple discovered the cause of the fire in the boys' room — a phone charger.

She added: "We checked and seen the cause of the fire was a charger, a genuine charger, not a cheap one. It was plugged into the wall not into the tablet, it must have overheated, and his mattress caught fire.

"Thank God Dualtach woke and had the sense to save his wee brother or it could be a far worse outcome.

"So please keep the charger off when not in use. Apart from a big shock and Donnacha’s burns we are all here alive and kicking and a hard lesson learned."

Dad Ryan added that Dualtach, a third-year student at Mulroy College in Milford was a real hero.

He added "We wouldn't want anything like this to happen to any other family. It was so close to being a real disaster. Dualtach was just amazing."