Residents feared man rescued from 'frightening' Portsmouth house blaze would not survive - as brave local dashes into inferno

As reported, a man was arrested for arson with intent to endanger life after the first floor fire at a house in Chatsworth Avenue, Cosham, around 1pm on Saturday. A male in his 50s was taken to hospital after several fire engines were first on the scene to treat the man. He is now in a stable condition in hospital.

Police have launched a probe following the incident that saw emergency crews swamp the area before a cordon was put up. A man in his 50s was arrested.

SEE ALSO: Attempted murder charge

A resident, who did not want to be named, said he was alerted to the nearby incident by his wife who saw smoke pouring out their neighbour’s roof. ‘There was constant beeping of the fire alarm and smoke was coming out. A distressed girl was running in and out saying there was a fire and a man was upstairs in a room before a neighbour called the fire service,’ the local said.

‘I went upstairs and couldn’t get in the room because of the thick black smoke. It was contained in the room. I came back down the stairs when the firefighters turned up.’

He added: ‘There were about five fire engines, three ambulances and police were everywhere. If the fire service were not called when they were and did not turn up so quickly then he would have died. I thought no one would survive that.’

A female resident said she heard a commotion before seeing firefighters and then paramedics working on the man. ‘They were going for an hour, it looked bad. It was frightening,’ she said.

Another said she saw emergency crews race past her house. ‘It’s awful to hear what happened. It’s lucky he survived,’ she said.

A statement from police said: ‘A man in his 50s was taken to hospital where he remains in a stable condition. A 50-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life. This incident is currently under investigation.’