A woman and her two teenage children fled their terraced home in Abingdon last night after fire broke out in a timber shed in the back garden.

Flames spread to the property in Reynolds Way, melting uPVC windows and quickly taking hold in the roof.

A total of 40 firefighters raced to the scene shortly after 10pm and cordoned off the road, which links Saxton Road to Gainsborough Green.

Next-door neighbour Jill Fletcher said she thought the fire could have been started by a barbecue held earlier in the evening.

Other residents in the terrace of four houses were also moved out in case the fire spread, and spent the night with friends and relatives in the area.

One man was treated at the scene by paramedics for the effects of smoke inhalation. Firefighters spent several hours at the scene, using a hydraulic ramp to aim their hoses over the roofs of the houses on to flames at the rear.

Divisional Officer Owen Smith, of Oxfordshire Fire Service, said the shed was destroyed before the blaze spread to the house and an investigation into the cause was now under way.

There was no immediate indication of how the fire might have started and fire officers were due to return today to inspect the burnt-out shed, which is owned by the Vale Housing Association.

The association's maintenance supervisor, Philip Allmond, spent seven hours at the scene. He said: "The roof is so badly damaged it will have to come off. "The rest is smoke damage mostly, with the roof of one adjoining property damaged as well.

"The families have all gone to stay with relatives, including the woman and her two children."

News of the fire came as a shock for one neighbouring couple, Nigel and Angie Feats, who were enjoying a drink in the nearby Saxton Arms pub when the alarm was raised.

Nigel said: "We're moving today to a new house, so when we heard that a house in Reynolds Way was on fire, we panicked and ran here from the pub.

"There was lots of smoke and flames coming out of the back but the fire brigade were here very quickly."

Angie added: "There were a lot of people out here in the street watching, including a lot of kids. One of our neighbours was taking tea and coffee out to the firefighters."

*Fire crews were called to tackle a blaze at a houseboat moored near The Plough pub at First Turn, Wolvercote.

Paramedics treated two people for the effects of smoke inhalation after fire broke out on the 30ft-long boat at 2am today.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.