A blaze at a block of flats, which panicked residents tried to douse with buckets of water, is being treated as an arson attack.

Eight people were rescued from the three-storey building in Sussex Avenue on the Spring Lane Estate after the fire started in a communal hallway on the first floor.

Just before 5am a recycling bin outside the home of Betty Foster caught light, triggering the alarm and filling her home with thick smoke.

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She then saw flames coming into her home under the front door.

"We were woken up by the smoke alarm at I don’t even know what time and started to throw buckets of water over the fire," Mrs Foster, 56, said.

"Then the flames started to come through. It has destroyed the front door to the flat.

VIDEO: The fire is being treated as an arson attack.

"The fire brigade came and they got us out via the balcony. I’m all right now, but it was terrifying at the time."

Police, ambulance and fire crews were called to the scene.

Firefighters told residents to stay in their flats with doors closed while they tackled the flames using a high pressure hose.

A second team then used a 13.5m ladder to lead eight residents to safety.

A Kent Fire and Rescue spokesman said: "All persons have been accounted for, there are no reports of any injuries and the cause of the fire will be investigated."

Crews left the scene just before 6am.

Builder Mark Bradley has just bought a second floor flat, but has yet to occupy it.

The 46-year-old said: "I got a phone call from my sister and came straight round.

"There's some smoke damage in there and it's going to take some cleaning. The stairwell is all blacked up.

"The main thing is that thankfully the residents all got out and no one was hurt."

Officials from Canterbury City Council were also on the scene to help those evacuated.

Mrs Foster added: "The council have been here and I'm hoping to get back into the flat later today."

Police have confirmed they are treating the fire as arson.

A spokesman said: "Kent Police was contacted by KFRS at 4.53am, to inform us they were dealing with a fire in a block of flats in Sussex Avenue.

"Early indications are that the fire may have been started deliberately, and so this incident is currently being treated as arson. Police enquiries continue."

Additional reporting by Alex Claridge, Kiran Kaur and Ellis Stephenson