Three men tried to save 66-year-old woman with bedsheet as she fell from burning house

Sussex Police are urging witnesses to the blaze in Hastings to come forward

The fire broke out along this row of homes in Hastings last night (Google Street View)

Three men desperately tried to save a 66-year-old woman using a bed sheet as she fell 30ft from the window of her burning home last night.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the blaze which devastated six houses on Marine Parade and caused the evacuation of 35 people in Hastings, Sussex.

The woman is said to be fighting for her life at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, where she remains in a critical condition in hospital after suffering spinal, pelvic and ankle injuries.

Sussex Police have launched an appeal to try and find the three men as part of the investigation into the cause of the blaze.

The fire is currently being treated as unexplained, but is not thought to be suspicious.

As many as 40 firefighters tackled the blaze, described by a council spokesman as the worst fire in the area for 30 years.

“It was very serious. It’s the worst fire in Old Town for almost 30 years. At one point we were looking at moving 200 people out,” council spokesman Kevin Boorman said.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Sussex Police on 101 or email 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk quoting Operation Fox.