‘You are a hero’: Man attempts to extinguish raging house fire - with a garden hose

Stephen Dixon, 54, was driving through Benfleet in Essex on Tuesday afternoon (20 April) when he spotted dark smoke coming from the roof of the bungalow.

Mr Dixon immediately rushed to help, climbing up a ladder and attempting to reduce the flames with just a garden hose, until the fire service arrived.

He recorded his attempts on a mobile phone, where the sounds of fire engine sirens can also be heard in the background.

Mr Dixon said: "I knew the hose wasn't going to do much in terms of putting out the flames.

"But it was a flat roof, so I was just trying to keep it from spreading across the whole roof and stop the whole thing going in before the fire brigade showed up.

"It felt like I was up there a long time, but I'm sure I probably wasn't - I'm sure the fire service got there as quickly as they could.

"At the end of the day, I'm just glad that everyone got out safely and no-one was hurt. I do feel for the poor lady whose house it is, though."

"There was another man who was actually inside the house trying to put the flames out from the inside - he's the real hero,” Mr Dixon added.

However, Mr Dixon said he doesn’t know who the man was or whether he lived there, but added: “I hope he's okay."

The £300,000 bungalow was left destroyed, with the roof having collapsed in the blaze.

‘You are a hero’

People on Facebook have since praised Mr Dixon for his heroic actions in attempting to control the fire, with one woman writing: "Well done for trying to help. You are a hero."

Another added: "You are a good man... well done for attempting to contain the fire till the fire brigade came."

A spokesperson for Essex Fire and Rescue said: "Firefighters were called to a fire in a bungalow in Benfleet this afternoon.

"When fire crews arrived they reported that the roof of the bungalow was alight and extinguished the fire by 4:45pm.

"Three people were left in the care of the Ambulance Service suffering from smoke inhalation.

"The cause has been recorded as accidental."