A MAN was found dead inside his own home after a huge blaze tore through the house in the early hours of Friday morning.

The home, in Keith Way, Southend, was completely destroyed in the blaze, which caused power cuts in the area for six hours.

Firefighters battled searing heat and thick smoke as they battled the blaze as fearful neighbours looked on.

The resident’s body was found by firefighters inside the home.

Nearby residents were left fearing they may need to evacuate, with dad-of-two Faisal Rais, even packing suitcases in case his family needed to flee.

Mr Rais, 42, said: “We were just in a state of panic.

“We didn’t know if we would need to evacuate the house.

“The electricity was out from half three to half nine.

“The roof of the house has been completely destroyed.

“The fire crews took a long time to put it out, but if they hadn’t got there so quickly it would have gone completely out of control.”

An investigation is underway into the cause of the fire.

Six fire crews were in attendance on Friday.

Lauren Smith, 33, of Keith Way, added: “It all looked very serious and was a bit scary to be honest.

“It sounds and looks like there’s been a lot of damage caused to the home, it will take a lot of work to sort it all out.

“It’s very sad that he’s died, I didn’t know him well but we would stop and chat a little in the street if we saw each other.

“He was always very polite. It’s such a tragedy and I cannot imagine what his family are going through right now.

“It must be a terrible time for them and my thoughts and feelings are with them.”

Fire crews revealed how the fire had been burning “for some time” before hoses were able to tackle the blaze.

Neighbours described the resident as “friendly and nice”.

Barry Thompson, 59, of the same road, said: “The top floor of the home has been completely gutted by the fire, there was so much smoke and I could see a little bit of the flames through the smoke too.

“It’s so sad about the man’s death – I spoke to him a few times in the road, he was often talking to neighbours but was fairly private. He was always friendly and nice.

“It’s terrible to lose someone but especially right now due to the Covid pandemic.

“I hope his loves ones are getting all the support they need.”

A spokesman from the fire service confirmed crews extinguished the fire at 5.21am, three hours after arriving at the scene on Friday morning.