A YOUNG neighbour has been hailed a hero after he raced into a burning home to save an elderly couple from their blazing home.

Gary Emery had been watching TV in his home in Cranbury Road, Eastleigh, when he heard the fire alarm and shouting coming from the house next door.

The 26-year-old, who works as a carer, fought his way through the smoke and flames to get Jim and Doreen Riley and their 15-year-old Jack Russell, Scooby, to safety.

Other neighbours left their homes and phoned the emergency services as smoke towered 40ft above the three-bedroom terraced property 12.30pm yesterday.

As reported by the Daily Echo, police, paramedics and fire crews from Eastleigh and St Mary’s stations rushed to the scene and firefighters rescued Mr and Mrs Riley’s three canaries, Banoffee, Zee and Pickle, and battled the flames which tore through the upstairs front bedroom.

Their carer and neighbour Ness Brown, 45, said fire chiefs told her it was the worst bedroom fire they had seen.

The two 83-year-olds were taken to Southampton General Hospital where Doreen, a retired auxiliary nurse, was treated for burns to her head and hands.

Gary, who was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation, said: “I was just so concerned about my neighbours I didn’t even think. The fire just spread so quickly.

“I knew how much the dog means to them because I know them quite well so I had to get him.

“It’s not something I thought I would ever do.

Everyone’s been saying I’m a hero but I don’t feel like one. I just did what I needed to do.”

Their daughter, Geannette Gibbs, 49, from Woolston, said: “I just tried to get here as quickly as I could. I just wanted to make sure that Mum and Dad and Scooby were out. My 15-year-old son is devastated because it’s his grandparents.”

The grandparents, who have been married 47 years, have lived in the house for the last 15 years and Jim, a retired British Rail engineer, merchant navy officer and competitive runner, has lived in the street almost all of his life.

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service group manager Ty Whitlock, who led the fire crews, praised the work of the firefighters who stopped the blaze spreading further and said the couple had been saved because of Gary’s actions and the fact they had a working smoke alarm.

He said: “The couple were alerted to this severe fire due to the fact that they had a working smoke alarm. It not only alerted them to the situation, but also a neighbour who bravely ran in and helped rescue the couple and led them to safety.