Nolte escapes blaze at his house

Actor Nick Nolte escaped a fire at his Los Angeles home that caused an estimated $3m (£1.7m) worth of damage.

The Cape Fear star tried to extinguish the fire himself with a garden hose before the fire brigade arrived.

The only injuries the 67-year-old actor sustained were smoke inhalation and a scrape to his arm, but he did not go to hospital for treatment.

Nolte's spokesman, Arnold Robinson, said the actor was "grateful" to fire-fighters and police.

The electrical fire started in the living room, said fire Inspector Frank Garrido.

Nolte smelt smoke from upstairs and broke a window to escape before tackling the blaze.

"Nick Nolte was there apparently with a water hose trying to extinguish the fire himself and of course we came to help him out," said Inspector James Barnes of the Los Angeles fire department.

Damage was caused to the structure and contents of the house, but the building was not destroyed, he added.

Nolte is a two-time Oscar nominee for his roles in The Prince of Tides and Affliction.

He can currently be seen in the Ben Stiller comedy Tropic Thunder, and will next appear in the thriller Nine Miles Down from British director Anthony Waller.