Gemma the fire rescue hero
HERO MUM SAVES FAMILY OF FOUR FROM FIRE IN THEIR HOME
A mum has been hailed a hero after saving her neighbour’s children from a house fire.
Mum-of-three Gemma Thompson selflessly risked her own life to rescue the stricken family – including a sevenmonth-old baby and two-year-old girl.
“I could hear someone screaming ‘get the kids, get the kids’ and I could see smoke so I just ran,” said the 34-year-old, from Wallsend.
“I didn’t know what to expect when I went in. There was just smoke and I didn’t know where the fire was.
“But I knew there were kids in there, and that I had to get them out.”
Gemma attributed her instinct and awareness to her job as a carer, adding: “I’m constantly on the lookout and I get told to be a nebby neighbour”.
The fire broke out at the family’s Percy Street flat just before 10pm on Wednesday.
Within seconds, smoke had engulfed the property.
Gemma was chatting on her doorstep with a friend when she heard screaming.
Without hesitation, the mum-ofthree ran into the flat to rescue the family.
“I could see the mam standing there holding a baby. I knew she had a baby and a little girl as I’ve seen them out in the pram,” she added.
“I asked where the little girl was and she pointed to the bedroom.
“I think they were in shock as the dad was ringing 999 inside the house, when all I was thinking was just to get them out.”
As the flames spread, the couple’s two-year-old daughter was fast asleep.
Calmly, Gemma scooped her up and carried her out as she guided the family to safety in her home.
“I think the little girl was still halfasleep as she clung onto me the whole time I was there, and she was really calm considering I was a stranger who had just taken her out of bed,” recalled Gemma.
“The family were shocked and obviously concerned that things would be ruined for Christmas.”
Within hours of the blaze, the community had already rallied around the family.
Food and clothes were collected, while big-hearted Gemma even offered them her bed for the night.
For her, the shock didn’t kick in until later. She struggled to sleep while she joked that she needed a bar of chocolate to help calm her nerves.
“Now I’ve had time to think about it, it could have been a hell of a lot worse,” she admits.