A MAN had to be rushed to the hospital with severe burns after a fire broke out at a fast food takeaway earlier today.

A MAN had to be rushed to the hospital with severe burns after a fire broke out at a fast food restaurant in Hornchurch on Friday (February 4).

The 53-year-old man was taken to Queen’s Hospital in Rom Valley Way, Romford suffering from facial burns after the blaze at the Coral Fish Bar chinese takeaway at Roneo Corner, Hornchurch, around 12.30pm.

Paul Livesey, director of Roneo Prestige Cars, which is next door to the takeaway, said: “It started when I heard their shouting, and so I put my head round the corner. There was a lot of smoke.”

Mr Livesey then ran to alert police at the nearby Brooklands and Hylands Safer Neighbourhood police base, two doors away, but saw officers running towards the building, having seen the smoke themselves.

He cleared the half of the car showroom nearest to the takeaway into a yard across the road, in case the fire spread.

“I thought if it spreads all the cars could go up,” he said. “At first it was just smoke but you could see flames coming right out of the top of the extractor duct at the back of the restaurant.”

Firefighters from Hornchurch fire station attended and using special breathing apparatus and a water hose they managed to bring the fire under control by 2pm.

“They were very lucky really, I think the occupants were all asleep in the flat upstairs at the time it started,” Mr Livesey said.

The occupants left the building via a side door and are believed, by shop worker from a different store, to have been initially evacuated to a car park at the end of the parade of shops.