A YOUNG man was rescued from a house fire which is believed to have been started by a discarded cigarette.

Firefighters were called to Rochdale Old Road, Fairfield, at 10.45am on Sunday after reports that a person was trapped.

Officers wearing breathing apparatus found the man, aged in his 20s, inside the house and led him to safety.

It is believed he was trying to fight the fire in the dining room. He was taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation.

The ground floor of the property was badly damaged by the blaze, and the rest of the end terrace property was smoke-logged.

Crew Commander Chris Fowles, based at Heywood fire station, said: “The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but is thought to have been started by carelessly discarded smoking materials.”

He added that there were no working smoke alarms in the property which would have given a much earlier warning of the fire, and limited the damage considerably.

Free home fire risk assessment are available by calling 0800 555815.