A NEIGHBOUR fought his way inside a burning house to rescue a trapped child.

Gareth Powell, 18, (pictured) braved acrid smoke and flames in the hallway, to find the little boy and carry him to safety, after fire broke out at the end-of-terrace house in Ebbw Vale on Friday.

The teenager rushed out of his house wearing only a pair of boxer shorts after hearing neighbour Jeanette Morgan, who had jumped from her bedroom window, screaming for help.

Her partner Mark Morgan and three children, Emily, Paige and Jacob, were trapped inside the blazing house opposite Gareth's home in Ashgrove, in the Ty Llwyn area, at 4.30am.

Neighbours rushed to help, putting a ladder up to the broken window so they could escape.

But Jacob was still inside and although neighbours could hear him crying they could not see him through the billowing smoke.

Gareth then plunged into the smoke-filled hallway, where he found the youngster and brought him to safety.

He said: "I went in to the house and it was filled with smoke. I could see the settee and a bit of carpet on fire. I was looking into the smoke and the boy seemed to come from nowhere.

"I helped him outside and he had a bit of trouble breathing - he must have taken in a tonne of smoke."

He added: "I don't think they would have got out if it hadn't been for everyone trying to get them out.

"Everyone who heard the commotion and was able to help was out in the street trying to get them out. Everyone seemed to chip in."

All three children, Mark Morgan and Jeanette Morgan were treated at Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny, for smoke inhalation and burns. Jacob, the youngest of the children, was later transferred to the University of Wales Hospital, Cardiff.

His condition is described as serious but stable.

The rest of the family were kept in Nevill Hall's high dependancy unit last night.

Fire investigators believe an electrical fault, believed to have been with the TV in the front room, caused the blaze.

Detective Sergeant Glyn Davies said: "It looks as if it was a accident.

"We are not quite sure of the cause of the fire at the moment but it does seem as if it was electrical.

"It could have been much worse for the family because the house is completely gutted with smoke damage.

"It's a wonder they were able to get out - they are very lucky."