Striking crews rescue woman and child

Firefighters put a ladder to the upstairs window

Retained firefighters in Lancashire left their picket line to rescue a young mother and her child from a house fire.

The 22-year-old woman and her four-year-old child were trapped upstairs in the property on Church Street in Great Harwood on Thursday night.

It is thought that an electrical fault in the lounge had started the blaze.

Retained firefighters who were manning the picket in nearby Oswaldtwistle got to the house in three minutes.

They used a ladder at the upstairs window to rescue the pair.

A Green Goddess military crew then arrived and put the fire out.