A man has described the moment he realised a fire was ripping through his detached bungalow - and said he is lucky to still be alive.
Michael Cutting, 69, was on his laptop in his bedroom when he heard a loud crackling noise coming from his kitchen.
Firefighters battled the blaze at his house in Weston Rise, Caister, for more than an hour on Wednesday morning, before bringing it under control at 3.20am.
The 69-year-old said he was still awake when the fire started at 2am.
'I saw flames coming from the kitchen and just ran out of my house.
'I was shocked and all I could think to do was to run to my neighbours' house. I left everything I had in my bungalow,' he said.
Mr Cutting believes if he would have been asleep he probably would have died.
He said he was unsure why his smoke alarm did not go off.
'Within a couple of minutes of me getting out the whole place was full of smoke.
'The situation could definitely have been a lot worse and I think I am lucky to still be here.'
Despite his swift response, Mr Cutting was treated in hospital for smoke inhalation but was discharged on Wednesday morning.
George Waites, 16, who lives at his parents' house next door, said he was woken up by Mr Cutting banging on the front door.
He said: 'When Michael told me his bungalow was on fire I did not believe him.
'It was only when I saw the thick black smoke did it begin to sink in. You could hear his glass windows breaking which was pretty scary.'
Mr Cutting believes an electrical fault with his fridge freezer caused the fire.
He said his fridge freezer, which he has had for more than five years, and his microwave have been badly damaged.
'I am not too concerned with the damage that has been done but it is just the inconvenience of having to get everything sorted.'
Hazel Anderson, 70, who lives opposite, said she saw flashing blue lights when she woke up to go the bathroom in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Three fire engines along with an ambulance attended the blaze with the last of the crews leaving at 8am on Wednesday.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here