Check your fire alarms and equipment

Our very cherished 2010 Autosleeper Kensington became a life line to us during the summer of the pandemic. We used our 'little palace' to take my 85 year old Dad out for day trips to nearby CL sites: we were safe, self contained and having great fun. Dad would help my husband to set up and then complete his task of filling up with water, whilst I quickly started on the bacon butties! Once the tummies were full (increasing numbers of rashers were requested as the weeks went by...) it was off for a walk. Thank goodness for the wonderful CL owners who were so welcoming despite our strange arrangement of not staying the night! We would return from our wanders to play a game of boule, consume yet more food, have a quick game of cribbage and then home It was lovely to see Dad getting fit and being out and about in a safe environment. Things had been difficult for him getting used to living alone after Mum passed away in 2019. They had been married for 59 years. The outbreak of Covid19 and imposed restricted socialising was beginning to take its toll.

However, our happy days came to an abrupt and devastating end when our 'little palace' caught fire outside Dad's house in the early hours of the August Bank Holiday Sunday. The wonderful fire brigade quickly got it under control and any potential explosions were averted. Thankfully, we were not in the van at the time and nobody was injured. Arson was ruled out by the fire fighters, but as the gas was turned off and the master switch was also off, the cause remains a mystery. Was it an electrical fault or an unexplained freak event - we will never know.

Our beloved, rare Autosleeper Kensington is no more and it is proving impossible to find a quality, replacement one. If anyone reading this has one to sell you would make our day..