By Alice Rose

A fire service campaign which intends to make people aware of the danger of electrical chargers has won European backing.

The campaign was started up by South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue following a house fire in which five members of the same family sadly lost their lives.

It is thought that the fire was probably caused by a faulty charger.

Linda McAvan, MEP for Yorkshire and Humber, is backing the campaign to help stop fires, such as the one in Netheredge, from happening again.

“We are doing all that we can to reduce fires in the home at a European level. MEPS have legislated to standardise chargers for mobile devices to both reduce environmental waste and to save you money.”

The legislation was voted on by MEPS in March this year and was approved by ministers in April.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue’s Station Manager Darren Perrott, said:“Most people probably have several electrical chargers lying around at home at any given time, but all we’re asking for is a little bit of common sense when charging them.” Mr Perrot continued “What we’re particularly concerned about is unbranded chargers which can be bought cheaply over the internet. You should only buy chargers which are compatible with the device you are charging, and never leave things charging overnight.”