A FAMILY has had their “lives saved” after working smoke alarms alerted them to a fire in their south Essex home, which has sadly left them homeless.

Firefighters were called to Mill Lane, in Billericay at 3:33am after residents had been woken up by their smoke alarms.

On arrival, crews reported that the ground floor of the house was heavily smoke logged.

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Firefighters wearing Breathing Apparatus entered the house and extinguished a fire in the living room by 4:12am.

However, due to the smoke damage to the house, the family has been left homeless.

Crews believe the fire was caused by an electrical fault.

Andy Smith, watch manager at Wickford Fire Station, said this highlights the importance of working smoke alarms as the residents’ lives were saved.

He said: “This incident really highlights why it is so, so important to have working smoke alarms at home. The residents were all asleep upstairs unaware there was a fire developing downstairs.

“Their smoke alarms saved their lives.

“Please make sure you have at least one working smoke alarm on every level of your home and test them weekly.

“If you haven’t got working smoke alarms, we can fit them for free.

“Get in touch with our team online at www.essex-fire.gov.uk/book or by calling 0300 303 0088.”