Firefighters rescue people from blaze at Rotherham apartment block

Crews were called to St Barbara's Close in Maltby yesterday shortly after 7.30pm.

A fire outside a two-storey apartment block had spread into the foyer area and a first-floor flat.

Firefighters equipped with breathing apparatus managed to extinguish the blaze and rescue four occupants who had been trapped inside the building.

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said fire control operators remained on phone to the residents throughout the incident, giving them useful advice on how to stay safe.

"By providing important fire survival advice, occupants were quickly guided to a place of safety in which they could reach fresh air," the service said.

"This allowed crews to rescue the occupants safely and quickly away from the building using ladders."

Crews from Maltby, Rotherham, Edlington and Aston Park fire stations attended the blaze, which had been extinguished by 8.13pm.

An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.

In a separate incident, a man was found dead at a flat in Maltby last night after a fire broke out.