A 60-YEAR-old man escaped from his Poole home after a faulty gas fire caught light.

Dorset Fire and Rescue Service was called on Friday to Alder Crescent on the Bloxworth Estate after a neighbour heard an alarm.

The fire in the ground floor living room was out when a crew from Westbourne arrived.

The man was treated by an ambulance crew for smoke inhalation.

A spokesman for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said Transco was called to make the fire safe as it was believed it was faulty and ignited when the man tried to light it.

Firefighters left the scene at 9.35pm.