A MAN has died and another has been left fighting for his life after an intense house fire ripped through a derelict house.
Six fire engines and 40 firefighters were scrambled to the scene in the early hours of Monday morning after the alarm was raised.
The London Fire Brigade said the inferno tore through a derelict two-storey home in Croydon, London, leaving both the first and second floor engulfed in flames.
Tragically, one man was declared dead at the scene and a second was rushed to hospital suffering from life threatening injuries.
A third man managed to escape from the blaze before firefighters arrived at the chaotic scene.
He was rushed to hospital and treated for smoke inhalation.
Fire crews from several stations managed to bring the intense fire under control shortly before 3am on Monday.
The London Fire Brigade and the Metropolitan Police have launched an investigation into the cause of the inferno.
A LFB spokesperson said: “Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters responded to a fire on Duppas Hill Terrace in Croydon.
“The fire involved the ground and first floors of a two-storey house.
“Sadly, one man was declared dead at the scene and a second man is in a critical condition in hospital.
“A third man left the premises before the Brigade arrived, he was suffering from smoke inhalation and was taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service.
“The Brigade was called at 1.30am and crews from Croydon, Wallington, Woodside and surrounding fire stations attended the scene.
“The fire was under control by 2.47am. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Brigade and Metropolitan Police Service.”
