A semi-detached house in Essex has been left uninhabitable after an electrical fault caused it to catch fire this morning.

Fire crews were called to the home in White Horse Avenue, Halstead, just before 10.20am.

Four crews, two from Braintree and one each from Halstead and Colchester, attended and on arrival reported that the first floor and roof were heavily smoke logged.

The road was closed off while firefighters tackled the blaze, which was extinguished by 11.30am.

The cause of the fire has been recorded as accidental and is thought to have started due to an electrical fault in the airing cupboard.

No-one was in the house.

Steve Wintripp, watch manager, said: “Halstead’s crew was the first to arrive and were faced with a fire on the first floor of a house.

“They quickly evacuated the neighbouring property, who had initially discovered the fire as no-one was home in house where the fire had started.

“Firefighters discovered that the fire had started to spread to the roof space so request further crews, including an aerial ladder platform.

“This was then stood down as crews were successful in quickly controlling the fire and preventing further spreading.”

“The first floor and roof have suffered from fire damage and the house is now uninhabitable, however, because the owners had closed all external doors before leaving, this limited the spread of the fire and damage.

“We urge everyone to close all internal doors when you leave a room and ensure all doors are closed before you leave home.”