A TEENAGER had a lucky escape after a candle on a television started a fire near where she was sleeping.

The 18-year-old woman woke up on the sofa in her living room in Beresford Road, Northfleet, to find the candle had melted down and caused the tv stand to catch light.

After getting herself out of the house at around 6pm yesterday (October 26) she called the fire brigade who took around an hour to deal with the blaze.

The crews from Thames-side and Swanscombe managed to contain the flames to the living room but the rest of the home was smoke damaged.

They left the scene by around 7pm.

A spokesman from Thames-side fire station says there was no smoke alarm in the house.