A botched kitchen extension caused a fire in Richmond last night after the flue of a chimney overheated.
Firefighters were called to Grena Gardens at 8.38pm to reports of a house fire, which started when the flue, which was said to have been incorrectly installed, overheated and caused wooden beams in the kitchen to catch alight.
The fire took 20 minutes to get under control and firefighters had to take down part of the ceiling.
Ben Midgley, green watch manager at Richmond fire station, said the crew were at the scene for two hours and nobody was hurt.
He said: "The fuse blew and the lights went out, which alerted the two occupiers to what was happening.
"It is fortunate that they realised before it spread further - there is three or four square foot of damage and will take a lot to repair it.
"Obviously there is the ceiling and the kitchen will need re-plastering as well."
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