Men rescued after two house fires

TWO men were saved by smoke alarms after their cookers burst into flames as they slept in Plymouth late last night.

The separate but almost identical blazes happened less than a hour apart.

Firemen rescued the first man from a basement flat in Embankment Road in the first incident just before 10pm.

The man had fallen asleep, and was overcome by smoke when his cooker caught fire.

Greenbank watch manager Steve Anderson said: "The man fell asleep and his cooker caught fire. He was overcome by the smoke.

"It could have been nasty, but his smoke alarm saved him."

Three men living above the flat in the terraced house in Embankment Road, Plymouth, raised the alarm.

Firemen wearing breathing apparatus went into the basement flat and pulled the man out before putting out the fire.

"It could have been a lot worse if the fire had got into an internal wall," Mr Anderson said.

All four were given oxygen by firemen and ambulance staff on the scene.

They did not need hospital treatment.

Two fire engines and an aerial ladder platform were sent to the house in Embankment Road after reports of a house fire with people trapped inside.

However, the aerial platform was not needed as firemen put out the small fire in the basement kitchen.

About 50 minutes later the Greenbank firemen were called to an almost identical incident in Laira.

"A man left food cooking on the grill and fell asleep," Mr Anderson.

"He was woken by his smoke alarm."

Two fire engines from Greenbank went to the house in Finch Close, Mullet Road, Laira.

The crews found a small fire in a ground floor kitchen. They used breathing apparatus while they put out the blaze, and then ventilated the flat.

"This shows how important it is for people to make sure that their smoke alarms are working," Mr Anderson said.