A gardener having a late-night bonfire sparked fears of a house fire yesterday.

Firefighters went to Frederick Road thinking someone's house was on fire after getting reports of clouds of smoke billowing around the neighbourhood at around 10pm on Sunday, May 19.

The crew said they could smell the smoke from Sutton fire station so left thinking they were going to a major blaze.

But when they got there they discovered bit was just a man having a bonfire in a wheelbarrow in his back garden.

A spokesman said: "There was a lot of smoke and when we got there we found people out in the street.

"But it turned out just to be a man burning some garden waste in his wheelbarrow. It was all quite damp so it made a lot of smoke and it was a still night so the smoke didn't disperse, it just drifted over the area.

"I'm not sure why he was having a bonfire at that time of night."

Firefighters used a hose to put out the blaze.