A dog has died in a blaze in Maidstone, in which a boy also had to be rescued from the roof of his home.

Emergency crews initially cordoned off part of the A229 Loose Road after the house fire started and while it has since re-opened, congestion remains in the surrounding area.

Crews were called at about 2.40pm where witnesses said they saw firefighters appearing to help somebody to safety out of a window.

Gavin Lewis, 39, owner of Lewis’s Fish and Grill, first became aware of the incident when he smelt the smoke from his shop.

"We noticed the smoke outside and so I went up to see what was going on to make sure somebody had called the fire brigade," he said.

"When I got there there was a young lad on the roof. You could hear the sirens in the background.

"The smoke was just billowing out of the roof. There was no way he could get down without a ladder.

"I just told him to stay there, the fire brigade was on its way. I have never seen smoke like it. The window was like a chimney.

“I asked the boy if there was anybody else inside and he said 'my dog' and then I turned around and the fire brigade had just got there.

“The boy seemed quite calm. The firefighters were amazing, they were just on it.

"Straight away their ladders were down and they were talking to the boy. They kicked the door in.”

While many of the emergency responders have now left, some remain, and tarpaulin has been put up near the scene, where crews could be seen trying to resuscitate the dog.

The house is understood to be occupied by a mother and children, with neighbours reporting that the blaze was started by a toaster.

Terry Dixon, who lives on the road, said: "You could see it from the back, you could see all the black smoke around the windows.

"It's quite bad. It looks like the house has been completely gutted."

A GoFundMe page has been set up for members of the family by a colleague, with £250 already raised.

On the page, Emma Hawkins, who set up the appeal, said: "This afternoon one of our employees received a phone call to say his family home was on fire. He lives at home with his mum, sister and brothers. Unfortunately their dog died in the accident.

"The fire has destroyed their home and everything inside, they have been left with the clothes they put on this morning.

"This is devastating for him and his family, they didn't deserve this at all."

Firefighters put out the blaze and left the scene just after 4pm.

A Kent Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: "Firefighters used hose reel jets to extinguish the blaze, before clearing the property with ventilation fans.

"Crews rescued one casualty from the property, who was then passed into the care of South East Coast Ambulance paramedics as a precaution for minor smoke inhalation.

"A pet dog was also rescued from the property but passed away at the scene. The cause is under investigation."

A spokesman for South East Coast Ambulance service said: "We received a call at 2.30pm on Thursday, January 16, with reports of a house fire in Loose Road. We sent on ambulance and two cars to the scene. Two teenage male patients were treated at the scene. One of them was taken to Tunbridge Wells Hospital for further checks. Both were suffering from smoke inhalation."

To donate to the GoFundMe page, click here.

Read more: All the latest news from Maidstone.