Nine people homeless after cigarette causes fire

Nine people have been left homeless after a lit cigarette caused a fire in a flat which spread to other homes.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service was called to Westcliff-on-Sea just before 08:00 BST on Thursday to reports of a fire in a downstairs flat.

Five people were rescued from the building and another four managed to escape.

Crews put out a fire in a bedroom of the property, which they believed was caused accidentally by a lit cigarette.

The property was heavily smoke-logged and has left its residents temporarily homeless, the fire service said.

Crews visited neighbouring properties in the aftermath of the blaze to issue fire safety advice and check for working smoke alarms.

Grant Jones, watch manager from Leigh Fire Station, said: "Every house fire we go to goes back to that age old message of making sure you have working smoke alarms at home.

"They really are so important to give you an early indication to a fire and to give you a chance to escape safely."

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