A FIRE which resulted in a pensioner being rescued from his burning flat started accidentally during cooking, firefighters said.

An investigation into the fire was held after the man was carried through the window of his ground floor flat in Holland Road, Weymouth at 5.15pm on Friday.

Alun Morgan, fire investigation officer and group manager for Dorset Fire and Rescue, said: “Following my investigation the cause of this fire has been identified as an accidental cooking fire.

“I am really pleased to say that the smoking alarms were working in this flat but they are only able to notify you that there is a fire. On Friday evening fire crews rescued the male occupant of this flat from a ground floor window.

“It is really important to develop an escape plan in the case of an emergency such as this.”