A high rise block of flats had to be evacuated after a blaze started on the ninth floor.

More than 20 firefighters were needed to tackle the fire in Shipwrights Avenue, Chatham, yesterday. Four crews and a specialist height vehicle were called to the scene just after 1pm.

The fire started on the balcony; setting light to a sofa and clothes drying on a washing line. The flames then started to spread inside the flat, causing some damage to the living room.

Simon Yaxley, watch manager at Medway fire station, said: "The fire alarm had gone off in the building so by the time we arrived all 40 flats had been evacuated and everyone was outside. Crews went in wearing breathing apparatus and tackled the fire from the floor below. We were on the scene for about an hour."

The cause of the blaze is not yet known. It is not being treated as suspicious.