AN 84-year-old man had to be taken to hospital after rubbish was deliberately set on fire outside his Kent home.

The alarm was raised by passers-by who spotted the blaze in front of a garage in Crowhill Road, Margate, just after 3am on Friday.

Smoke was getting into the house through open windows.

The man was treated in the town's QEQM Hospital for smoke inhalation. His 79-year-old wife was shocked but otherwise uninjured.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police on 0800 555111.