Neighbours on Liverpool Old Road in Walmer Bridge called the fire brigade after hearing the alarm going off in the empty house at around 10pm on Monday.

When firefighters arrived they found plugs for powerful ultra-violet lights used to boost the plants growth had been "overloaded".

Police, who found two bedrooms filled with plants, have now launched an investigation and are hunting the growers, who were not in the house at the time.

A Lancashire Police spokesman said: "Our officers were called by the fire brigade who had been called to a smoke alarm being triggered by too many plugs being plugged into one socket.

"The owners of the property were not in at the time we arrived and we have now launched an investigation to try and find these people."

He would not confirm the quantity of plants which were growing in the upstairs bedroom of the property but said it was "a cannabis factory."

Steve Brown, watch manager at Penwortham fire station, said crews from Penwortham and Bamber Bridge had been called to the incident at 9.53pm and had to break down the front door to get into the house.

He said that the property was "thick with smoke" and firefighters wearing breathing apparatus tackled the flames using a dry powder extinguisher.

The fire chief said: "The fire was in the house's electrical mains and had been caused by a plug socket being overloaded.

"The hallway of the property was heavily smoke-logged so we committed two firefighters in breathing apparatus."

However, there was some confusion when the utility company went to check the electricity supply. Workmen visited an address on Liverpool Old Road in neighbouring Much Hoole rather than Walmer Bridge.





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