Firefighters rescue four as blaze breaks out in flat

Four people were rescued when fire broke out in a city centre flat early this morning.

The fire in Buckingham Terrace, broke out at around 4.40am in an unoccupied first-floor flat. Two residents of the flat above had to be rescued by ladder, and a further two neighbours from the block next door were led to safety down their own stairwell.

One of those rescued was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation.

At the height of the incident 29 firefighters, 12 wearing breathing apparatus, were at the scene, with five fire engines and a turntable ladder.

Fire service group manager, Geoff Aird, said: "The initial crews were called out this morning to a fire on the first floor. They feared that it had spread to the floor above so they asked for a further fire engine to come along.

"Then firefighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the property, dealt with the fire and two people in the flat above were brought to safety using a turntable ladder. Two other occupants from an adjoining property were also led to safety.

"It's taken a couple of hours to bring the blaze under control. The crews then had to bring down the ceiling to make sure the fire hadn't spread to other properties and that's why we're still here.

"We're unsure what the cause of the fire was at the moment, but we don't think it was suspicious."

A teenage student was forced to decide whether to stay in the top floor – or overcome her lifelong fear of heights to be rescued by fire-fighters using a turntable ladder.

Alex Jeffrey, 17, and boyfriend Shae Grimsdale, 18, were woken by thick smoke at the property near Stockbridge shortly before 4.30am this morning.

Shae has been staying in his parents flat on Buckingham Terrace while training to become an engineer in South Queensferry. Girlfriend Alex, a sixth form college student, was up from Berwick visiting for the weekend.

Realising they were trapped with no way of escaping downstairs they called for help and stood by their bedroom window.

But Alex is scared witless of heights – and was panicking when firefighters arrived at their window to save them using a turntable ladder.

She said: "After we called, the firemen came really quickly.

"They got us to climb out of the window and stand on this two foot ledge.

"But I'm scared of heights.

"I was scared, terrified.

"It was either that or stay in the burning building.

"I went down first, they checked if I was OK then went up for Shae."

"We did alright."

A large part of Buckingham Terrace was cordoned off while Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service tackled the blaze and secured the site.

The Red Cross were called in to help deal with evacuees and check for potential casualties at the scene.

Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service deployed five pumps to the scene after the blaze spread from the first floor to the second, the worst of the flames said to have been in a space between both levels.

The fire was extinguished by 8.30am but fire crews were still on site checking the building for any potentially dangerous, hot spots.

A fire investigations unit reached the scene shortly after 8.30am to find out what started the fire.

Fire services had isolated the electricity supply and turned the gas off.