A woman has been left homeless after a fire in her home this morning.

The house in Hunt Avenue, Heybridge caught fire just after 7.30am leaving the woman homeless.

The resident and the neighbours had evacuated their houses when they heard smoke alarms going off and called the fire service.

Firefighters arrived at the scene and crews reported a fire in the first floor and roof space of an end of terrace house.

Crews worked to extinguish the fire in sections to prevent it spreading to neighbouring roof spaces.

The fire was extinguished by 10.30am but crews remain at the scene to monitor hotspots.

The house was fire damaged and smoke damaged and the resident is being supported by the Red Cross team.

Two neighbouring houses also have smoke damage to their roof spaces.

An investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the fire.