FLATS had to be evacuated as firefighters made a desperate search for a missing man inside a blazing building.

Firefighters were called to flats for the elderly where a fire had taken hold in the kitchen of the first floor at Kinloss Court, Lordshill, Southampton at 6pm last night.

Residents that called in the fire feared that the elderly man who lived there was inside and fire crews broke down the door and went inside to look for him through thick black smoke.

Meanwhile a number of flats near the flat affected had to be evacuated.

Fire crews from Redbridge and St Mary’s searched the flat looking for the man struggling to see through the smoke, but concluded there was nobody inside.

They tackled the fire using a four breathing apparatus and a hose.

The fire was caused by cooking that had been left on the electric hob above the oven and was treated as accidental.

There was damage to the microwave and oven and the property had to be cleared of smoke.