Two people were rescued after a blaze in a terraced home.

Two engines from Kent Fire and Rescue were called to Cedar Drive, Edenbridge, at 2.44am this morning after a fire started in the kitchen of a mid terraced home.

Kent Fire and Rescue Control Room Operator Joanne Wheaton took the initial call.

She said: “Fortunately the lady had been woken by a smoke alarm which KFRS had fitted and she’d managed to escape but we quickly established that there were two people still upstairs.

“I gave the caller essential safety advice such as shutting the door, putting something against it and getting to the window, and she shouted this up to the couple. She was quite confused so I had to calm and reassure her but this was what I’ve been training for.”

Two pumps were sent from Westerham and Edenbridge and crews used ladders to rescue a man and a woman from the upstairs bedroom.

They were treated for smoke inhalation.

Control Room Watch Manager Sarah Merriman praised her colleague's action.

She said: “Joanne gave the caller vital information to pass onto the occupants, obtained the necessary information with regard to their whereabouts in the property and kept her calm until the arrival of the first crews.

“Joanne has only been on the watch since November and this was the first call of this kind that she has taken. She did extremely well in dealing with this.”

It’s believed the blaze was caused by a faulty fridge freezer.

Edenbridge Watch Manager Gary Milan said: “It was a slow burning fire but it was filling the house with hot gases and the couple said they could literally hear the air being sucked out of the room so this was potentially a very nasty job.

“We’d fitted the smoke alarm during a home safety visit and this undoubtedly saved their lives.

"As a stark contrast, the elderly neighbour had taken her smoke alarm off the wall because it had been annoying her and we had trouble waking her. Please take this example as a warning and check that your smoke alarm works or take advantage of our home safety visits.”

It is not known how much damage there was to the home.