A man with a broken leg was discovered asleep on his sofa when Royal Navy firefighters arrived to put out a blaze in his home.

Two red fire engines were called to Whyke Court in St Aubyn's Road, Fishersgate, at 12.42pm on Saturday after reports of smoke coming from a ground-floor flat.

Sailors went into the living room and found a man with his leg in plaster asleep on the sofa.

Royal Navy Lieutenant Commander Simon Fleisher said: "He was lucky. The sofa he was on was starting to catch fire.

"He was surprised and a bit panicky. The fire was put out within half an hour."

Three adults and three children had to be rescued from the flat above.