A FAMILY of eight escaped a blaze in their home.

The fire started at around 7.30am this morning (April 12) on the ground floor of a house in The Drive in South Woodford.

A young boy was woken by the smoke alarm, which had been fitted by London Fire Brigade just two months before.

He woke two members of his family, who then left the house before firefighters arrived.

Four fire engines and 20 officers from Woodford, Leyton and Leytonstone stations rescued a further five people from the house.

Three women were rescued from the first floor, a man was rescued from the second floor, and a fourth woman was brought down from the roof of the garage.

Seven people were treated for smoke inhalation at the scene, three of whom were then taken to Whipps Cross Hospital.

The ground floor of the house was partly damaged by fire while the rest of the house was damaged by the smoke.

The blaze was put out by around 9.45am. The cause of the fire is currently being investigated.

Station manager Paul McClenaghan said: “This family was undoubtedly saved by their smoke alarm.

“We could have been faced with a tragedy on a huge scale were it not for the fact that the alarm went off and enabled the family to quickly call out the brigade.

“I can’t stress enough just how vital it is to have working smoke alarms in your home.”