CHESHIRE Fire have issued a warning to residents about the dangers of chimney fires.

Firefighters attended 94 chimney fires in Cheshire, Halton and Warrington between 2014 and 15.

Since 2010, 561 calls have been made to extinguish chimney fires.

Eight chimney fires were attended in Warrington in 2014 to 2015 – a reduction of five incidents compared to five years ago. 

Nick Evans, head of prevention at Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service urged residents to stay on top of the maintenance.

He said: "Without proper maintenance a chimney can become dangerous and cause a house fire, so it’s important that we get the message across of how important it is for people to get their chimney swept before using them, during this week long campaign.

“There has been a 32 per cent reduction in the number of chimney fires we attend over the past five years which is great news but we want to bring this figure down even more.

“It’s important that people get their chimneys swept now and not leave it until the last minute or simply forget to get the job done.”

Nick added: “If the worst should happen, a smoke alarm can give you the extra time you need to escape in a house fire – make sure you test yours regularly.”