Firefighter Steve Doidge turned his hand to fighting crime when a car almost ploughed into his colleagues as they tackled a blaze.

Mr Doidge sprang into action when he heard a crash as firefighters from Hove fought flames leaping from a stolen car in Cromwell Road, Hove, at about midnight on Friday.

Mr Doidge, 31, saw a Ford Fiesta XR2 hit several parked cars before missing the fire engine by just a few feet.

He said: "If he had been going just ten miles an hour faster he would have hit us but he hit three or four cars in the process anyway."

When the vehicle came to a halt the firefighter yanked the Fiesta door open and grabbed the joyrider inside, who was trying to drive away from the scene.

The steering had locked because the front wheels had buckled under the Fiesta during the collision.

As the firefighter grabbed the driver, a second man - believed to be one of the owners of the parked vehicles - arrived on the scene and tried to hit the youth.

Mr Doidge said: "I tried to get him out of the car and as I was doing that some guy was trying to take a swing at him."

As Mr Doidge tried to prevent a punch-up, the driver slipped his grip and fled. The firefighter said: "He said he had to get out of there. He slipped loose and started running."

Mr Doidge gave chase but lost the joyrider after about 400 yards.

Mr Doidge, who is usually based at Roedean but had been transferred to Hove for the night, said: "Perhaps I should have sat on him. I had hoped for a quiet night."

Police are now trying to trace the driver, who caused damaged costing hundreds of pounds.