A MAN in his nineties was given oxygen therapy by fire crews after he was overcome by smoke in his kitchen.

The casualty had been cooking in his flat, in Wedgwood Way, Ashingdon, when he was alerted to the fire by his smoke alarm.

Firefighters from Southend and Rochford stations were called to the scene at about 1.30pm and left the man in the care of paramedics shortly after 2pm.

An Essex Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: "Distraction in the kitchen is a deadly danger and it only takes a moment's inattention to turn you from cook to killer.

"More than half the house fires in Essex start in the kitchen and one in three domestic blazes are sparked by someone cooking."

The service advises residents to never leave cooking unattended and to keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker.