A skip fire could have spread to nearby homes if a passer-by had not spotted it and called the emergency services, firefighters have said.

A crew from Fairwather Green was called out to an alleyway in Arnold Place, Manningham, at around 12.30am today, where a skip full of household waste was ablaze.

Watch commander Ronnie Goldwater said: “Luckily a passer-by had spotted it. The building next door had started to smoulder, so it was just caught in time.”

He said the affected building was a derelict shop, but that it was attached to an occupied home and there was another occupied house on the other side of the alleyway.

He said: “We told them just to remain where they were, as long as they knew what was happening and shut the windows, they weren’t in any danger.

“It could have had serious consequences had it not been spotted so quickly.”

The cause of the fire is now under investigation.