A dad-of-two wrestled a burning tumble dryer out of his family's house after it caught fire this morning.

He hauled the heavy machine out through the door to save his home, in Grovelands Avenue, Norbury, from damage.

He had been alerted by the smell of burning just after 8am while his two young children were getting ready for school.

Two fire engines from Norbury station attended the blaze. 

Crew manager Nick Morley said: "The husband unplugged the machine and managed to lift it out through the patio doors. It had more smoke than flames. It had started to go brown inside.

"Everyone was a little bit shaken up, but fine. The tumble dryer was almost completely destroyed but the property was not damaged."

Firefighters cleared the house of smoke and offered advice on preventing and dealing with future fires.

Mr Morley said: "You should check inside tumble dryers for fluff and build-up, which is how fires start."