Man taken to hospital after fire breaks out in Blackburn flat

Firefighters attended the blaze in Whitehaven Close, Blackburn, at around 11.30pm on Tuesday.

On arrival, a man in his fifties had managed to get himself out of the property.

An ambulance was called and paramedics treated the man for smoke inhalation before taking him to Royal Blackburn Hospital.

The fire was extinguished before it spread to neighbouring flats

The fire is believed to have started in the living room, and smoke has spread throughout the property, completely destroying the inside of the flat.

Marley Gallacher, who lives in the property below, said her house has been flooded as a result of the fire and she may now have to find alternative accommodation.

The 24-year-old said: "I've been here since October, but before that I was homeless, and I've just managed to get myself back on my feet, and even had a new floor fitted recently.

"I was terrified when the fire broke out, not because I thought I would get caught in it, but because I was scared it would damage my house and I would be left with nowhere to live.

"The living room has flooded. The firefighters were great and they put the fire out but the water has come through the floorboards.

"My housing officer has been out to speak to me this morning, and I still don't know if my flat is structurally safe until someone comes out to assess it.

"I heard the man is ok as I saw him outside, I'm just glad it wasn't worse."

Windows at the rear of the property were smashed as a result of the fire

Neighbour, Laura Shannon, said that luckily, her house wasn't affected.

She said: "We got woken up about 11.45pm and had to come out of the house.

"I'm just pleased that the man is ok. I don't know him very well but we always see him riding his bike.

"The fire didn't affect us but my little girl who is only five was scared and crying.

"At one point I did think it was going to spread as there was a lot of smoke, and when we came outside, the flat was literally covered in smoke and the flames were blowing out of the windows."

Windows at the rear remained blackened and broken

A spokesperson for the fire service said: "The man had been in the fire for some time but managed to get out and was suffering from smoke inhalation.

"Smoke from the fire had spread into the loft space and was at risk of spreading into other properties, but crews in BA managed to extinguish the fire using a hose reel before using tactical ventilation to clear the smoke.

"The fire was particularly bad and had caused significant damage to the rear of the flat.

"The remainder of the property has suffered smoke damage and the whole flat will need to be gutted."

Firefighters remained in attendance till around 1am on Wednesday.

The cause of the fire is now under investigation.