A MAN was led to safety after a fire broke out in a maisonette in Upper Gornal in the early hours of this morning (Saturday December 21).

The incident happened in Pale Street at around 1.54am.

Firefighters were called out to the first floor property, located in a three-storey block, after a small fire started in a cooker in the kitchen.

A spokesman for West Midlands Fire Service said the incident was the result of cooking left unattended.

Firefighters removed the charred cooking, ventilated the property and led one man to safety, she added.