A FAMILY narrowly escaped burning to death after a wheelie bin fire spread to their home as they slept.

Claire Kelly, 24, and her two children Emma, eight and Josh, three, were woken by Claire's husband, Alan, in the early hours of Saturday after he heard smoke alarms going off.

When Mr Kelly got up to investigate, he was met with thick, black smoke rising from the downstairs of his home at Farnham Walk, Park End, Middlesbrough.

He managed to evacuate the family, including their dog Gipsy, within minutes of the flames from a wheelie bin outside the side door penetrating Emma's bedroom above.

Mr Kelly, 32, said: "The fire went straight through the shelter, which is half brick and half wood, and my daughter's bedroom is right above there. The fire was just about to reach it when we got out.

"The children were shaking and didn't know what was happening.

"Someone over the road had called the fire brigade and we were just standing watching the house burn down.

"Another 15 minutes and I think we would have been dead."

By the time firefighters arrived, the blaze had destroyed part of the floor of Emma's bedroom and burnt through her bed.

It had caused severe smoke damage to the upstairs and much of the downstairs of the house, and only the living room had been spared.

The family is now seeking alternative accommodation.

Station officer Dave Wass said: "This was an unusual thing to happen. The smoke alarm saved the family's lives.

"Without it, we could have had at least one fatality. I would urge everyone to get a smoke alarm and if they have one, to have it checked."