Fire crews called to two blazes started by candles in Fife

A Fife family set fire to their bath as they tried to extinguish a burning pizza box.

The mother and son had to be evacuated from their flat in Burntisland’s Rossend Terrace shortly after 2am on Friday.

Neighbours rallied to throw buckets of water through the bathroom window to keep the blaze under control before firefighters arrived.

The fire service said the fire was caused by a candle that had ignited a pizza box in the home.

Damien Kitchener, who shares the house with his mum Nikki, had moved the candle and pizza box to the bathroom in an attempt to extinguish the fire, which resulted in igniting the plastic bath.

The male casualty was checked over at the scene by ambulance personnel for mild smoke inhalation and did not require hospital treatment.

At 10.20am firefighters were called to a second candle fire at a flat in Abel Place, Dunfermline.

A neighbour was alerted by their smoke alarm going off and rushed to the flat, banging on the door to wake the male occupant.

The male casualty was treated for smoke inhalation and burns to his hands, before being taken to hospital.