An elderly woman in her 80s has been treated for smoke inhalation after a fire in a Whitstable house this morning.

Crews were called just after 9am to Canterbury Road, on the junction of Swanfield Road, to reports of a house fire.

The woman had managed to get out of her home to safety prior to fire crews arriving.

Two engines attended the scene, accompanied by two fire service cars.

Crews wearing breathing apparatus limited and extinguished the blaze in the weather-boarded house, using a hose reel.

A thermal imaging camera was used to look for hotspots and to check for fire spread.

The cause of the fire is being currently being investigated but is thought to have started in the lounge.

Whitstable fire station manager Leon Dyball said at the scene: "The fire was in the front room.

"The elderly female is currently with her neighbour and we are making sure there are no hotspots in the house.

"It's a timber construction building so it could present hidden fires.

"She will get checked out by an ambulance crew for smoke inhalation."

The woman was given precautionary checks by the ambulance service.

A Red Cross vehicle also attended providing practical and emotional support.