A CHARTERED surveyor has praised his neighbours for saving his family after a skip was set on fire.

Flames soared 25ft into the air from the container near the back of Mark Painter's house - destroying two fence panels.

The telephone line was damaged, double-glazed window panes cracked and guttering melted due to the heat of the blaze.

Mr Painter, his wife and seven-year-old daughter were asleep when the fire, which caused about £4,000 damage to their home, started at about 2.45am.

They were woken by one of their neighbours banging on the front door.

Mr Painter, 41, of St John's Road, Penge, said: "It was very frightening waking up to the fire. The heat was incredible.

"Thank you very much to the neighbours for waking us up.

"It is at times like this you realise there is still a sense of community."

His daughter Lucy normally sleeps in the bedroom at the back of the house but was using another room because hers was being redecorated.

The father-of-one believes she could have suffocated from the thick smoke if she had been sleeping in her usual room because the window would have been open.

He said: "There was a lot of smoke and it could have been a lot worse."

Firefighters took about 15 minutes to bring the fire under control.

Bromley Council is currently talking to the skip owner to get them to remove it from the area.

The council will remove it if the owner does not take action within the next few days.

Bromley police is treating the incident as arson but a spokesman says it is not being linked to any other attacks.

Penge and Cator Safer Neighbourhood Team is investigating the August 11 incident and anyone with information about the fire should call 020 8649 3541 or 07843 065880.