Clubbers hit by cig blaze.

A STRAY cigarette butt sparked a safety scare after a blaze broke out in a nightclub.

Firefighters were called to Tup Tup Palace, on St Nicholas' Street, in Newcastle, after a fire broke out in the upstairs smoking area.

It is thought a fag end had slipped down the side of a tile, setting alight the floorboards underneath.

Four hundred revellers were evacuated from the popular nightspot, which passed its fire safety inspection just two weeks ago, at around 2am on Friday as a safety precaution.

One of the directors, James Jukes said the fire was very small.

He said: "It was a freak occurrence and very unlucky to happen.

"Although the fire was very small and we put it out with a fire extinguisher, we decided to call the fire service as there was no way of getting through to where it had started because of the tiles.

"Business is continuing as usual although that particular outside area will be shut until we can make sure that nothing like this can happen again."

Crews from Colby Court, West Denton and Gateshead fire stations attended the incident, alongside Northumbria Police.

CAPTION(S):

FIRE: Tup Tup Palace