Fire crews spent 40 minutes tackling a chimney fire at a home in Douglas.

An engine was called to Dalton just after 1pm on Sunday to reports of the blaze.

When firefighters arrived they found the fire was well-established high up in the flue and had to use a turntable ladder to deal with it due to the height.

Posting on Facebook, Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service said: ‘On arrival crews discovered a well-established fire high up in the flue. Due to the location of the fire and height of the property our turntable ladder was requested to attend to assist with extinguishing the fire from the chimney stack.

‘Thankfully the fire was found to be contained within the flue and crews were in attendance for approximately 40 minutes.’

The fire service has issued advice following the incident to help households avoid a similar incident in their homes, particularly as the temperature drops and the use of open fires and log burners increases. The advice includes:

- Chimney flues should be regularly inspected and swept by an accredited chimney sweep. As a general rule once a year for smokeless coals, up to four times a year for wood if regularly used and twice a year for bituminous coal.

- If burning wood ensure that it is properly seasoned with a low moisture content.

- Ensure you have a carbon monoxide detector in the same room as the fire/appliance and that you have working smoke alarms fitted in your property.