NORTH Wales Fire and Rescue Service is investigating a fire at a flat in Wrexham.

Crews were called to the first-floor property in Coed Aben at 2.50am on Tuesday.

Two residents in the block of two- storey flats managed to get to safety before the fire crews arrived.

It is believed the occupant of one flat called the emergency services.

There was heat damage to about 70% of the flat and smoke damage to the stairwells used by residents. None of the other three flats in the building were damaged.

The blaze happened just hours after the fire service issued a warning to Wrexham residents to double-check their fire safety arrangements in the aftermath of the fire at a block of flats in South London last Friday, in which six people, three of them children, died.

Senior fire safety manager Richard Fairhead said: “It’s crucial that you and your family discuss how you would escape in the event of a fire in your home and, to give yourself the greatest chance of escaping unharmed, ensure you have working smoke alarms fitted.

“If the smoke alarm or fire alarm sounds in your home or in your building you must act quickly and make your way out as soon as you can, using the escape route you have identified.”

He added: “I would like to reassure people living in flats in North Wales that such buildings have double protection in lobbies and staircases to ensure your safety.

“But it is important not to wedge open fire doors, which are there for your protection.”