A MAN and his dog escaped a devastating fire which ripped through his home and left smoke billowing across Colchester.

The 89-year-old man had to be taken to hospital while his Yorkshire terrier dog was rescued by fire crews after the blaze at the house in New Kiln Road, Colchester, yesterday morning.

A man called 999 when he spotted the fire in the end-of-terrace house and then knocked on people’s doors nearby to wake them up and tell them to get out.

The elderly resident, who has mobility problems and uses a stairlift, had managed to get out by himself and was standing in front of his burning home when fire crews arrived.

Leading firefighter Peter Goody said: “We could see the smoke from the station, it must have been at least 30ft high.

“When we arrived, the heat of the fire had blown out the windows. It was very well developed and extremely intense.

“When we got there, the man had managed to get outside.

“He said he had been through a world war and would be okay. He really was a very lucky man.”

Six firefighters, wearing breathing masks, went into the house to tackle the blaze while colleagues used three hoses to blast it from the roadside.

The fire started in the front bedroom and gutted the first floor. Windows in the bedroom and the bathroom at the back were blown out and the bedroom floor had collapsed into the lounge below.

The flames were so hot, they stripped plaster from the walls in the upstairs rooms.

Paramedics took the man to Colchester General Hospital. He had suffered singed hair, minor burns and the effects of breathing in smoke.

Peter Booker, 27, who lives next door with his mum Liz said: “I could see the fire from my bedroom window. The flames were rushing out, shooting out horizontally.

“When I went out the front door, I could feel the heat on my face. It was pretty fierce.

“If all we’ve got to put up with is a bit of a smell of smoke in the house, then we’re lucky.”

Mrs Booker, 55, added: “I’m just so pleased that the man and his dog are okay.

“When we got outside, I heard my smoke alarm go off and I thought ‘that’s it, our house is going to go too’ but the firemen managed to save it in time.”

It is believed the man’s daughter collected the dog.

The cause of the fire is not thought to be suspicious.