Around 50 people evacuated a block of flats on Elmfield Way, Maida Hill following a fire caused by cardboard boxes being left against a storage heater.
Twenty-one firefighters and officers attended the blaze which damaged around a quarter of a two bedroomed flat in the block. There were no injuries.
Watch Manager Matt Manning who was at the scene said:
“The fire was caused by cardboard boxes piled up next to a storage heater. The flat’s occupant had unpacked some boxes, broken them down, leant them against the heater and then left the building.
"While the resident was out the cardboard began to heat up and eventually caught fire. The winter is drawing in now and lots of people are turning the heating on again for the first time in months. It’s really important to remember to keep paper, furniture, blankets and other flammable materials away from heaters.
“Neighbours admitted that the smoke alarm had been going off for some time but they waited until they saw smoke before they called the Brigade. Don’t delay if you hear a smoke alarm sounding as the quicker we know about the fire the quicker we can respond."
The Brigade was called at 2225 and the fire was under control at 2313.