An elderly couple had a lucky escape after an electric blanket caught fire in a freak accident.

The blanket had been turned off but plugged in and the 72-year-old man had turned it on by rolling on its remote control as he slept.

The build-up of smoke had caused him to cough and wake up in time.

Folkestone Fire Station crew manager Heather Heath said: “The smoke could have killed. There was a smoke alarm was outside the bedroom but the coughing woke him up in time.”

Fire crews were called to the bungalow at Minster Avenue, Densole, at 2.45am today.

The electric blanket had been left on a corner of the floor and began smouldering and giving off acrid smoke.

Firefighters had to wear breathing apparatus when they entered the property but both the man and his wife were unhurt.

The emergency services had arrived before the blanket could burst into flames, but its smouldering had burned flooring underneath.

Firefighters, who were at the scene for up to an hour, used a hosereel to put out the smouldering blanket and also cleared the smoke with a device called a positive pressure ventilator.

The remote control device was a multi-purpose type used for other items such as the television.