A FAMILY escape a blaze at a Southampton home which ripped through the kitchen.

The fire started on the worktop of a house off Lower Brownhill Road, Maybush, at around 3pm yesterday but when firefighters got to the scene they could see flames coming from windows at the back of the house.

On arrival they feared there might be people inside and firefighters went in to tackle the flames.

But the crew managed to establish that a woman and boy who had been inside had got out themselves.

They used a hose to put out the fire and fans to move smoke out of the property.

But the worktop was destroyed and there was damage to the units above and ceiling and the whole kitchen was severely damaged by smoke.

An ambulance attended and checked those involved over but they were uninjured.

A firefighter who attended said the cause was thought to be electrical and therefore accidental.