Woman rescued from fire by 16-year-old neighbour

Date published: 12 January 2012

A woman in Heywood had a lucky escape from a fire after her neighbour came to her rescue.

The 52-year-old was dragged from the burning building by a 16-year-old who lived nearby.

The woman had discovered a fire in her lounge, believed to be caused by a carelessly discarded cigarette.

She called Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service but before fire-fighters arrived, the teenager had got into the property and found her on the settee.

Watch Manager, Mark Bamford, said: "He did a sterling job, there's no two ways about it. The outcome could have been very different.

"It would have been very unpleasant. The heat was concentrated on one level as it was a bungalow and there was acrid smoke."

The incident happened in Furness Avenue at around 11.30pm last night (Wednesday 11 January).

Fire crews quickly extinguished the fire but it caused smoke damage to the whole property.