A YOUNG couple were rescued from their home by firefighters after leaving a chip pan on overnight.

The fire brigade was called to the house in Temple Street, Parkfield, Stockton, just after 7am yesterday after a blaze broke out in the kitchen.

The man and woman, both in their early 20s, were helped down a ladder from an upstairs bedroom by firefighters, and received treatment at the scene for smoke inhalation.

The blaze was put out quickly, but the kitchen was severely damaged by fire and the rest of the house badly damaged by smoke.

Station Officer David Coates, from Thornaby fire station, said the couple had been out drinking the night before and started cooking afterwards.

"They forgot to turn the pan off," he said. "Cooking after you've been drinking is not a good idea.

"They didn't have a smoke alarm either, and that would have alerted them to the fire much sooner."