The fire was caused by an electrical fault Pic: Vera Kratochvil

A fire in a flat that left three elderly women injured was caused by an electrical fault, the London Fire Brigade has revealed.

Fire fighters from five different stations evacuated five elderly people to safety at a sheltered housing complex on Whytecliffe Road in Purley on Monday (October 26) morning.

Three of the elderly people rescued were treated for smoke inhalation, and received first aid and oxygen until paramedics arrived.

A further 25 people evacuated the building before a 30-strong fire crew in six fire engines arrived.

The fire was under control in just over an hour but about half of the ground floor flat was said to be damaged.

A spokesperson for London Fire Brigade said the cause of the fire was now believed to be an electrical fault, but they could not reveal anything else in relation to the incident now the investigation into what caused the fire is complete.

Figures on the London Fire Brigade website show that in the last year all EastLondonLines boroughs rated as “worse than average” for fire-related incidents, by comparison with the average incident rate of 2,914 in London.

Croydon had the least recorded incidences with 3,456 and Lewisham had just one more, while Hackney had 3,915 and Tower Hamlets had the most at 4,302.