Four people taken to hospital after blaze breaks out in six-storey block
Four people were taken to hospital after a fire tore through the ground floor of a six-storey block of flats on Sunday.
Ten other adults and one child escaped the building in Portland Place, Marylebone, before the London Fire Brigade (LFB) arrived.
Five fire engines and around 30 firefighters tackled the blaze that damaged half of a ground floor flat in the residential block.
Four adults wearing smoke hoods were led to safety from the first and second floors by firefighters wearing breathing apparatus.
They were all taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service staff, suffering from smoke inhalation.
The LFB’s 999 Control Officers received five calls about the fire.
The LFB received their first call at around midnight and the fire was extinguished by around 2am.
Crews from Soho, Paddington, Kentish Town and Lambeth fire stations attended the scene.
The fire is being treated as accidental and the most probable cause is a textile that was too close to a lightbulb.
An LFB spokesman said: “Fire escape hoods provide members of the public with up to 15 minutes protection from four of the main fire gases and can be worn by conscious or unconscious people.
“If more than 15 minutes protection is required then another hood can be given to each wearer. They do not provide oxygen but temporarily filter toxic smoke to make breathing easier.
“Firefighters recommend that you have a look at our online Home Fire Safety Checker to make sure there are no hidden hazards in your home.”
(Picture: LFB)