A NEIGHBOUR has spoken of her relief after a young family escaped a blaze in their home.

The fire broke out in the ground floor of the semi-detached house, in Manners Way, Southend, on Sunday afternoon.

A mum and four children managed to escape.

The woman, who did not want to be named, lives next door to the gutted home.

She said: “I heard a hammering on my window and ran out and saw the fire and all the smoke coming from the downstairs window.

“I grabbed my house phone and called the fire brigade.

They were here very quickly and put it out very quickly.

“It takes hold so fast, but they all got out safely, which is the main thing.”

The family have been left homeless by the fire and their home is boarded up.

Fire crews went in to save two dogs and a cat.

The cause of the fire is not yet known, but is not being treated as suspicious.