A PERSON was rescued in a ‘very lucky escape’ from a burning building near the A35 in the early hours of the morning.

Fire crews from Bridport and Charmouth were called to a property fire in West Road, off the A35 near Bridport, just after 3.30am with a person trapped on the first floor.

Breathing apparatus was used by the firefighters who managed to evacuate the person through a window on the first floor.

A spokesperson for Bridport Fire Station said: “Both Bridport appliances and one from Charmouth Fire Station were mobilised to a property fire on West Road, A35 with one person trapped on the first floor.

“On arrival crews found a fire on the ground floor and one casualty at a first-floor window.

“The casualty was evacuated through the first-floor window using a triple extension ladder and provided oxygen due to smoke inhalation.

“Once the casualty was clear of the property and the fire was confirmed out, the positive pressure ventilation fan was used to clear the smoke.”

The casualty was then passed to the ambulance service and taken to hospital for further checks.

The spokesperson continued: “The fire is believed to have started accidentally after a discarded cigarette caught fire to a sofa.

“There were no working smoke alarms in the property and the fire was only discovered due to a neighbour waking to the smell of smoke. Upon investigation they found the casualty at the window calling for help with smoke issuing.

“The casualty had a very lucky escape but if they had working smoke alarms they could have been alerted to the fire much sooner.”

Two breathing apparatus teams were deployed during the rescue using two hose reel jets and two thermal imaging cameras.