Elderly man dies in bungalow fire

An elderly man who died in a bungalow fire may have been smoking late at night, the fire service has said.

Firefighters were called to the blaze in Yeaton, near Baschurch in Shropshire, about 2300 GMT on Friday.

A neighbour broke into the property and tried to rescue the victim but was beaten back by thick smoke and severe heat, a fire service spokesman said.

He added the cause of the fire was being investigated but was thought to have been caused by smoking materials.

The incident was not being treated as suspicious.

The man's neighbours contacted emergency services after hearing smoke alarms while out walking their dogs.

'Extra cautious'

The fire broke out in the lounge area of the bungalow and was confined to this area.

"At present it is thought that this tragic incident is most likely to have been caused by smoking materials," the spokesman said.

"Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service would like to warn of the general dangers of smoking late at night or when tired, and urge all members of the public to be extra cautious when extinguishing all smoking materials."

West Midlands Ambulance Service sent two ambulances to the scene.

"Sadly, it quickly became apparent that there was nothing that could be done and the man was confirmed dead at the scene," a service spokesman said.