The scene after the fire on a residential street in Gosport,Hampshire

Credit: David Clarke/Solent News & Photo Agency

Fire chiefs have issued a warning after an e-scooter was blamed for a devastating blaze that tore through a row of seven houses.

Families in Gosport,Hampshire,were forced to flee their homes on Wednesday evening,after a fire broke out at a three-storey property before spreading to surrounding buildings.

A spokesman for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service said: “The initial reports and the preliminary fire investigation has found that an e-scooter is the most likely cause of the fire.

“The main danger occurs when e-bikes and e-scooters are left on charge and unattended in homes or in communal areas such as hallways and stairwells.

“Charging lithium batteries indoors increases the fire risk,especially if charged overnight when occupants are sleeping.”

One of the houses caught in the inferno

Credit: David Clarke/Solent News & Photo Agency

A total of 10 fire engines and 60 firemen worked through the night to control the blaze,which spread through seven out of the eight houses in the terrace.

Images of the aftermath show the roofs of several of the buildings have collapsed,with the underlying structures now so fragile that many families cannot return to their homes.

“It was just an inferno and it happened so quickly and it just spread,” a neighbour Fiona Taylor told ITV Meridian. “It was harrowing and horrific to watch because you knew your neighbours were watching their houses go up one by one.”

Jenna Robinson,a friend of the young mother who lives in the house where the fire started,has launched a fundraiser to help those affected.

“She’s lost everything. Obviously all the bedrooms have been burned. She only wanted to get one box out which was the memory box but hasn’t been able to,” said Miss Robinson.

The roofs of houses collapsed

Credit: David Clarke/Solent News & Photo Agency

Incidents of electric vehicle fires are on the rise. 

A total of 149 fires caused by exploding e-bike batteries were recorded by the London Fire Brigade in 2023,an increase of 71 per cent from 2022,according to figures provided to The Telegraph.