An 18-year-old man was taken by ambulance to hospital after being led to safety by his friends and neighbours following a blaze at his Telford home.

The man was suffering from smoke inhalation after the fire, which broke out last night in the kitchen of a first-floor flat in Lord Murray Drive, Woodside.

Firefighters and paramedics gave him emergency first aid and oxygen at the scene before he was taken to the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.

Tweedale Watch Manager Neil Maguire said the fire broke out shortly before 9.30pm when a frying pan left unattended on a cooker hob in the flat burst into flames.

Mr Maguire said: “A working smoke alarm was in the property and that alerted the occupant to the fire.

“The same detector also raised the alarm with neighbours who went to investigate and led the man to safety prior to the arrival of the fire service.

“The message from us is to always ensure your property has a working smoke alarm which is maintained, tested on a regular basis.

“We would also urge people to respond if they hear neighbours’ smoke alarms sounding.”

Two fire crews from Tweedale, one from Telford and an incident command vehicle from Shrewsbury attended last night’s blaze.

Mr Maguire said damage to the flat was minimal but firefighters remained on the scene checking for hot spots in the loft area.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman said the fire service called for an ambulance. She added: “We treated an 18-year-old man at the scene and he was transferred to the Princess Royal Hospital.”