TWO people were rescued by firefighters and taken to hospital after breathing in smoke when a radio caught fire early on Sunday morning.

Three fire crews and police officers attended the blaze that took hold at a ground floor flat in Carlinghurst Road, Wensley Fold, Blackburn, which was reported just after 7am.

Firefighters say the man and woman, who were thought to be in their 30s, were both taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital suffering from the effects of inhaling smoke.

Police initially treated the fire as suspicious and sealed off the road when they thought the woman was seriously injured.

The area was declared a crime scene, but the police operation was scaled down when it was discovered the woman was not as poorly as was first thought.

The fire destroyed the radio and one square metre of the surrounding area. The rest of the room suffered some heat damage and severe smoke damage.

The rest of the flat was left smoke damaged.

A spokesman for Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service said: "We received reports of a fire at the property early on Sunday and three appliances attended along with colleagues from the police.

"The firefighters used breathing apparatus and removed the two occupants from the building and a hose reel was used to tackle the blaze.

"The two people, a man and a woman, were taken to hospital for treatment for the effects of breating in smoke."