British family tell of amazing kindness after French home destroyed by fire
Their house burned down in only 30 minutes - along with all their possessions
The Sinclair family (inset) were not injured in the blaze that destroyed their home
Sinclair family
A family have told of the huge kindness they have received after their home – with all they own – was destroyed by fire in just 30 minutes.
Luckily, no one was hurt but Britons Teresa and Daniel Sinclair (pictured with daughter Esther, 14, and sons above) now face an agonising wait for their insurance to reimburse them so they can rebuild the property.
They say it could be a year or more before the work can begin.
Mr Sinclair said they have received amazing support from friends and the local community.
Their elderly French neighbours have appeared en masse with clothes, cash, food and numerous offers. The mayor also arrived offering help.
One friend has lent a holiday home until Christmas and then they will house-sit for another.
Mr Sinclair said: “We now hope the insurance company can install a mobile home on site. We have eight cats, 23 dogs, four chickens and three geese, so putting us up in an Airbnb is problematic, and our daughter has her final exams soon.
"We think the cause was an electrical fault, but we really don’t know. We also had rats, which could have chewed on wires.”
'Our dream home'
The family moved to Bonnat in Creuse (Nouvelle-Aquitaine) in 2017 to beat the Brexit deadline and had just started renovations on the property after saving up enough money to begin the works.
They had recently laid down a new floor and knocked down an internal wall the day before the fire on November 3.
“We were watching TV together when we heard a popping sound. I went to investigate and was met with an impenetrable roar of black smoke upstairs.
“We got everyone out, but half an hour later, the whole house had gone,” said Mr Sinclair, who is an occupational therapist by profession but also runs a gardening business.
The fire service arrived in 15 minutes but it was too late. “It was our dream home, our little piece of paradise, far from the madding crowd.
“The renovations had been a long time coming. Brexit forced our hand to move over early, so we couldn’t afford to do it straight away and I was building my business. We were finally in a position to progress.
“We thought to go back to the UK but we came here to get away from the intense way of life. There’s a reason why we came here and it has not changed.”
Among documents destroyed was paperwork the family planned to submit towards their French citizenship and Esther’s school books.
“Perspectives change very suddenly. It’s an odd feeling having to rely on others, and makes you empathise with people going through tragedies across the world, from floods to war zones.
But at least I know we will come back from this. We are determined to get our lives back on track.”
A GoFundMe page has raised nearly €6,000 for the family.
