Toddler starts flat fire

Firefighters from Hastings assisted a Bexhill crew in dealing with a fire in a flat.

Police directed traffic through the narrow gap left after two fire appliances and an ambulance had to park alongside kerbside cars outside of Alexandra Flats, opposite Cambridge Road.

Leading Firefighter Dave Leggatt said: "The fire was in the top floor front room.

"It started when a child of two or three put his clothes on top of an electric fire. The fire was switched on - so up it went!

"Fortunately, the people were very sensible. They whipped him out of the room and shut the door, so preventing the fire from spreading to the rest of the flat, and got out of the property.

"Damage was confined mainly to the room and consisted mostly of smoke damage. Fire damage in the room was mainly to the rug the electric fire was standing on.

"Unfortunately, they had all breathed in a bit of smoke so we called the ambulance and they treated the family. They dealt with them there and then. They didn't need to go to hospital."

The brigade used its positive-pressure ventilation fan to clear smoke from the flat.