A family of ten escaped from a house fire today - thanks to a smoke alarm fitted hours earlier.

The blaze ripped through the living room of the house in Waverley Road, Great Horton, Bradford.

Ten people were asleep upstairs in the house including two young children - one who suffers from muscular dystrophy.

The alarm alerted the family who all managed to escape unhurt.

The blaze, which started at just after 4am today, severely damaged the living room. It is believed to have started due to an electrical fault in the television.

The two children, Saimaar Sait, seven, who has muscular dystrophy, and his sister, six-year-old Saraha Sait, were carried to safety by relatives.

The two children were back at school today while their grandparents Mohammed and Jan Sait were left to clear up the damage. Mr Sait's son Mohammed Sait said: "We heard the alarm go off and thought it was a car alarm but when we checked downstairs we could see the smoke billowing out of the room. We all managed to get out and isn't until something like this happens that you realise how valuable the alarms are.

"They saved our lives and they only cost £3. I'd only put it up yesterday afternoon.

"A lot of neighbours have been round and have seen the damage. Many of them have not got smoke alarms but are going to buy them now."

Firefighter Mick Shaw, of Fairweather Green fire station, said the family had a lucky escape. "It was amazing how lucky they were," he said.

"It was quite a bad fire with all the fumes and the family are very lucky indeed."

Station officer Jack Womersley, of the Community Fire Safety Department, said: "I am very pleased that the message is getting across to the public.

"This is another incident where ten lives have been saved by fitting a smoke detector which costs just £3.

"Hopefully this shows that our hard work in getting people to fit alarms is paying off."

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