A care worker dragged a pensioner to safety in a blaze at a Baildon nursing home today.

The worker used an extinguisher to tackle the fire at Hillbro Nursing Home before pulling the resident clear from his bedroom in the drama at 4.25am.

Both the care worker and the unnamed pensioner were taken to Bradford Royal Infirmary suffering from smoke inhalation.

Two fire crews from Shipley were called to the scene in Holden Lane. They found the fire, which had started on some bedding, already out.

Fire investigation teams were today trying to find the cause.

It is the second fire at a nursing home in Holden Lane owned and managed by Patrick Berry since the new year.

On January 4, a serious blaze broke out at Holden Grange Nursing Home, across the road from the Hillbro home.

The fire, believed to have been caused by a cigarette, was confined to a bedroom which suffered heavy smoke damage, and some furniture was destroyed.

Mr Berry said: "This is the first fire we have had at this home. We believe the resident in question may have been smoking in his room.

"We insist on a strict no-smoking policy throughout the building including bedrooms, but occasionally the odd client has had cigarettes in their room.

"We also insist that clients do not keep lighters."

But he was full of praise for his staff who helped rescue the resident.

"Our staff have recently been on fire training updates," he said.

"We had two carers and a trained member of staff on duty at the time and I have nothing but praise for the way the staff acted promptly and efficiently following procedure, and the fire officers also commended their action.

"Everyone except the client whose room it was have now returned to their rooms as the smoke damage was contained in the one room."

Mr Berry said he was considering changing the rules and refusing admission to residents who smoke.