Firefighters have battled a blaze at a house in Whitstable that began in a bag of hot ash.

Three fire engines rushed to the home in Island Wall at 10.30am today.

On arrival, crews found an external corner of the building ablaze, with the fire spreading rapidly.

Wearing breathing apparatus, they used jets of water to tackle the flames, and worked quickly to stop it from spreading indoors.

It is thought the fire started accidentally, after hot ash from a log-burning stove was emptied into a bag and put outside.

The heat from the ash then spread to a nearby bin which ignited, before spreading to the building.

The incident has prompted crews to warn members of the public never to put hot ashes into a bin, and to "ensure the ash has fully cooled before safe and appropriate disposal".

Read more: All the latest news from Whitstable