A DAD has spoken of the importance of having a working smoke alarm after his family's lives were saved by one during a fire at their home.

Roger Grafton's house in Cornerswell Road in Penarth went up in flames in the early hours of December 21, 2016 after the dishwasher caught fire in the kitchen on the ground floor due to an accidental electrical fault.

He, his wife and two children suffered from smoke inhalation and Mr Grafton himself was treated for it after the blaze which broke out at around 1.15am.

He said the smoke alarm "saved the lives" of his whole family and urged everyone to "fit one today" adding that it costs "just a few pounds."

Mr Grafton said: "We were all fine. I had some treatment for smoke inhalation but my wife and children were completely okay."

He also praised the fire fighters from Penarth and Cardiff whose quick response helped make sure he and his family were safe and well.

He said: "Between dialling 999 and the fire service arriving, just six minutes elapsed.

"That is a fantastic response."

He said that the carbon monoxide alarms had alerted them to the fire which had originated in the dishwasher.

And his calls have been backed up by the leader of Penarth's fire service who said that if they did not have a working alarm, the situation could have been completely different.

Dave Ansell, station commander at Penarth Fire and Rescue Station said: "Fortunately in this instance the residents had working smoke alarms fitted that alerted them to the fire and they escaped safely.

"If they did not have working smoke alarms, the outcome could have been entirely different.

"A smoke alarm is your early warning system, which will detect and alert you to a fire.

"If there is a fire in your home, a smoke alarm will give you valuable time to escape.

"South Wales Fire and Rescue Service encourages everyone to have smoke alarms fitted in their property and test them on a weekly basis."

The freephone number to arrange for a visit from a local station to give home safety advice and have smoke alarms fitted for free is 0800 169 1234.

Fire fighters later ventilated the property due to heavy smoke logging and checked a neighbouring property before finishing their work.