POWERHOUSE Lee Anders has been hailed a hero after bulldozing through his front door to rescue his sleeping mother and sister from a blaze at their home.

The burly 19-year-old prop forward with Parr Hare and Hounds Rugby League squad was at his friend's house, just over the road from his home in Orrell Street, Fingerpost, when he saw flames spurting through the roof of the semi-detached house at around 11pm on Thursday, March 1.

Lee ran back to the house and kicked down the door to wake his mother Dawn, 43, and seven year-old sister Zoe who were sleeping upstairs. He then rang the fire brigade straight away and then led his mum and sister to safety outside the house.

Lee, who had been to play snooker earlier in the evening, told The Star: "My first reaction was to just run as fast as I could and see if my mum and little sister were okay.

"When I realised they were asleep upstairs I knew the only thing I could do was to get inside the house and wake them up.

"The smoke alarms in the house were not going off and it was a very scary moment for everybody concerned. When something like this happens you don't think about yourself. All I wanted to do was make sure everyone was out of the house and free of danger."

Firefighters spent over an hour tackling the blaze which destroyed the loft and most of the upstairs in the house.

It was thought to have been started by an electrical fault in the extractor fan in the bathroom.

Dawn, told The Star: "It is unbelievable what my son has done. He was so brave and his speed of thought has saved our lives. If he hadn't got into the house as quickly as he did, myself and Zoe who is so proud of her big brother, would not be here today.

"From a personal point of view I am distraught at what has happened. The fire has caused a lot of interior damage and we have had to be re-housed for between three and six months while the property is repaired."

Clive Webster, fire safety officer, told The Star: "The actions of Lee Anders were remarkable. If he had not shown such courage in leading his mum and sister out of the house the end result could have been much worse.

"The Fire Service would like to point out that if you have a hard wired fire alarm system you should always ensure you have battery back up."