Fire officers are investigating the cause of a blaze which badly damaged a house in Dover in the early hours of this morning.

The alarm was raised at 3am when neighbours saw smoke coming from the house at Chamberlain Road and heard the smoke alarm sounding.

The people who lived at the house were away at the time.

Fire-fighters used breathing apparatus to get into the house and tackle the flames.

The fire was in a first floor bedroom which was badly damaged. The rest of the house was affected by smoke.

Although the exact cause is not known, fire officers are advising people to make sure they switch off and disconnect all electrical items when they go away, and not to leave appliances on stand-by.