Devastating fire left family with only gerbils

A Birmingham family have been left with only their two pet gerbils after a devastating fire tore through their home, destroying nearly everything they owned in a matter of hours.

Paul Stephens, 51, was sunbathing in his garden on 13 August when he noticed smoke billowing from nearby. Within minutes, flames that had started near a local park were spreading rapidly through overgrown grass and scrubland, jumping from garden to garden across a stretch of 35 properties on Gorleston Road in the Warstock area of Birmingham.

“We were hearing people shout, ‘Wet your fences, wet your fences’… but there was nothing you could do,” Stephens said. The family had lived in the terraced house for 30 years. In that time, they had raised two children there, now aged seven and nine, and built a life that was reduced to ash in a single afternoon.

What was lost

The fire destroyed wedding memorabilia, electronics, clothes and the everyday belongings that had made the house a home. Stephens described the loss as particularly difficult for the children, for whom the property had been the backdrop to their entire childhood.

“We’ve lived there for 30 years… and just everything’s gone,” he said. “It was the kids’ childhood home growing up, and everything’s gone.”

A small miracle amid the destruction

Amid the devastation, the family discovered a small piece of good news when they returned to the property the following day. Snowy and Fluffy, the family’s two gerbils, had survived the blaze. The pair had been kept in their enclosure in the downstairs living room as the fire tore through the building above them.

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“When we went back the next day, we thought the firemen were bringing out two dead gerbils but they weren’t, they were alive,” Stephens said. The children each have one gerbil, and both animals are now safe.

Struggling to find suitable temporary accommodation

The family has been moved into temporary Airbnb accommodation while they work out what comes next. But finding somewhere suitable has proven difficult. Stephens has severe neuropathy and requires accommodation that meets his accessibility needs, while also being practical for a family of six.

“We’re being passed from Airbnb to Airbnb at the moment because every house that we go for is not suitable, or for some other reason we can’t get it,” he said. “We just need a bit of luck but we don’t seem to be having any at the moment.”

Community steps in

Local people have rallied around the family in the aftermath of the fire. Clothes have been donated, and the children have received tablets to replace the computers and electronic devices lost in the blaze.

“The people in the community… they have gone above and beyond,” Stephens said. “They went and bought them new clothes and tablets and all, because all their computers and stuff and everything was all in there.”

Why it matters

The fire on Gorleston Road highlights the speed at which deliberately started or accidentally ignited fires can spread through built-up residential areas when dry vegetation provides a bridge between properties. Fire services have repeatedly warned during periods of warm, dry weather about the risks posed by overgrown gardens and scrubland near homes.

The human impact is also significant. Families who lose their homes to fire face not only the immediate trauma of the event but a lengthy struggle to find suitable accommodation, particularly when medical conditions or accessibility needs are involved. The Stephens family’s experience is a reminder of how quickly a household can be displaced and the patchwork of support that often follows.

What happens next

The family is hoping to find a permanent home where they can begin rebuilding their life. In the meantime, they remain dependent on the informal support of their local community and the temporary accommodation arrangements that have kept them under a roof, however uncertain.

The wider question of how fires spread between properties in dense urban streets is likely to remain a focus for fire prevention teams as the UK continues to experience periods of warm, dry weather that elevate the risk of vegetation fires spreading into residential areas.