NEIGHBOURS have been hailed heroes for their efforts in saving the lives of a Bury family from a suspected arson attack on their home today.

They say that if it had not been for the actions of Kalid Mammood and Omar Mohammed, two children and their parents would have perished in the blazing house.

Police said today they were treating the blaze as malicious. The house was badly damaged.

Irfan Mohammed, 24, and his wife Rifiat were awoken by Kalid, who threw a brick through their first floor bedroom window to alert the sleeping couple to a fire in the hallway of their Spring Street home, near Bury town centre.

Unable to reach the stairs, Irfan lowered and then dropped his two young daughters, Selina, four, and baby Aneeka, from the bedroom window into the arms of Omar.

The couple were forced to leap from the blazing house, sustaining minor injuries in the fall.

Three fire crews arrived soon after to tackle the blaze, which is believed to have been started by petrol being poured through the home's letter box.

Station Officer Paul Myerscough said: "Had Kalid not roused the family from their sleep then we could have been dealing with fatalities. The family would not have stood a chance against the thick smoke. Kalid and Omar should be praised for helping to get the family out."

Omar, 16, a student at Bury College, dismissed the hero claim. He told the BEN: "I did what anyone would have done."

The two children and their parents were taken to Bury General Hospital for treatment to minor smoke inhalation and cuts and sprains sustained in their leap to safety.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.