A PRIZED £60,000 racing car was gutted by a fire which then spread and damaged the vehicle enthusiast's Chaddesley Corbett home.

The Lotus sports car went up in flames on Saturday in the garage of the house in Hemming Way, Chaddesley Corbett.

Neighbours helped the owner, who races sports cars, to rescue a valuable Morgan but the fire engulfed the Lotus and also damaged the kitchen and an upstairs bedroom.

The fire was started accidentally when the owner was using an oxy-acetylene torch in the garage, said sub-officer Mick Rowlands, of Kidderminster Fire Station.

Four fire engines from Kidderminster and Bromsgrove attended the blaze, which began at about 11.30am on Saturday.

Sub-officer Rowlands said: "The flames were belching from the front of the garage by 15 to 20 feet."

The efforts of firefighters were, however, hampered by the presence of potentially explosive containers inside the garage, said sub-officer Rowlands.

The kitchen was "burnt out" at the detached family house, of which the garage was an integral part, said sub-officer Rowlands.