A COLLAPSED building forced firefighters to rescue four people from a house on Wednesday morning.

The two adults and two children were led to safety from the back of the property in Dollis Avenue, Finchley, after a side extension buckled and crushed the garage door..

Neighbours were also evacuated by emergency services after the collapse at about 4.30am as checks were carried out on gas and electric connections in the house.

Engineers from Barnet Council, contractors and architects were called to the scene to ensure the house was secured.

The owner of the construction firm working on the site said there was no lintel over the garage door which meant there was not enough support.

He said: “Because of the weight of the concrete tiles on the roof it had shoved the roof out on to the unsupported extension.

“We knew it hadn't been built right but it was a shock when I received the call telling me it had collapsed.

“It was going to come down anyway for a new extension so we were lucky it happened really.”

A neighbour living next to the 1930's building, which was being renovated into a four bedroom detached house, said they were woken when the wall fell down.

“The family were asleep in bed when there was a big bang noise,” he said.

“It was a real shock, we had no idea what it was.

“We were evacuated on the advice of the police and the road was closed for most of the morning.”

The building was covered by tarpaulin and secured with scaffolding.

The fire brigade are investigating the cause of the collapse.