A YEAR-OLD baby was thrown to safety from a burning building in Dover at the weekend (Rachel Grant writes).

The baby was dropped from a first-floor balcony by the mother and was caught by a man after a fire started in the hallway of flats on Friars Way. The man had already jumped out of the house and into the garden about 20 feet below.

Firefighters then rescued the mother from the balcony using a ladder. The hallway was burnt out and the rest of the flat had smoke damage.

The cause of the fire, which started at about 3.15am on Saturday, is not yet known known but an investigation has been launched. The blaze is not being treated as suspicious.

The family were woken by a smoke alarm and after discovering their exit route through the hallway was blocked, they shut the door and escaped from the balcony.

Sub Officer Nick James said: “Had the smoke alarm not been there it would have been a very different story.” All the residents in the cluster of flats were evacuated until the blaze was put out.

* Smoke alarms are available for free from local fire stations and can be fitted by fire fighters during a free home fire safety check. For more information call Dover Fire Station on 01304 202202.