Kirkholt man treated with oxygen after cigarette starts fire

A man was treated with oxygen, late last night  after coming out of his flat to find smoke from a bin chute fire pouring onto the landing between flats.

The fire, at The Strand, Kirkholt, had spread from the communal bin to a roof covering a yard in a neighbouring property.

Firefighters tackled the blaze using two hose reels, cutting gear, a 9m ladder and thermal imaging camera to ensure the fire was entirely out.

Watch Manager Barry Malone said: "The fire was burning really well when we got there and smoke had travelled up to the flats.

"A 57-year-old man, an 89-year-old man and a 74-year-old woman had smelled something and come out of their flats to find the smoke.

"The 57-year-old man was treated with oxygen because he'd been breathing a bit of the smoke in.

"We've put the cause down to smoking materials going down the bin chute."

None of the residents went to hospital or needed any other treatment.