AN ANIMAL-loving teenager risked his own life to save family pets from a fire which destroyed their home.
Aaron White 14, was alone in the three-bed semi-detached property in Pilning when the blaze broke out at lunchtime yesterday.
He got out safely as flames tore through the first floor and roof space but re-entered the smoke-filled property to turn off the gas and save three of the family's pet dogs - two German Shepherds and a Labrador.
A fourth dog, a Jack Russell, called Simba, was trapped upstairs and is thought to have died in the inferno.
Aaron's mother Dale White, his sister Kim, 19, and brother, Jamie, 16, were all out of the property, in Wick Road, when the fire started at around 1pm.
Mrs White, who had been out shopping with a neighbour, returned home to witness smoke and gouts of flame shooting from the roof.
"We've lost everything except the clothes we stand up in," she said. "I just thank God the children weren't hurt.
"We'd lived in that house for 10 years and had some happy times there. But even the photos of when the children were little have gone."
Mrs White was full of praise for her son's actions.
"He kept calm, brought the dogs out of the house and turned off the gas at the box on the wall outside," she said.
Aaron, a pupil at Marlwood School in Alveston, was watching TV downstairs when the fire broke out.
"The electricity tripped and I went out into the hall," he said. "I heard crackling and looked up the stairs but all I could see was thick, black smoke.
"I ran outside to raise the alarm and then went back in again to get the dogs. I wanted to get Simba from upstairs but it was impossible. She was a good dog but was quite old."
He said it had happened very quickly and he had no idea what had caused it.
More than 30 firefighters from Avonmouth and other local stations brought the blaze under control, but not before the house was largely destroyed.
Avon Fire Service spokesman James Bladon said firefighters were on the scene within minutes of the first call.
"The house was well alight and the fire was spreading next door," he said.
"Crews had to use breathing apparatus to enter the roof space of the adjoining property and tackle the flames there or that would have gone up too.
"This was a very serious house fire and it's lucky there were no casualties."
Fire crews also stopped the flames from engulfing the home of next door neighbour, pensioner Rene Thomas, 84, who also got out safety after neighbours raised the alarm.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The damaged house was so unstable - its gable end was in danger of collapse - that fire service investigation teams were initially unable to enter to sift the debris for clues.
The White family and Mrs Thomas were this week staying with relatives until Merlin Housing Association, which manages South Gloucestershire's housing stock, can make arrangements to rehouse them.
Merlin Housing Association spokesman Fay Galvin said surveyors would enter the building to assess the damage when it was safe to do so.
"However, a visual inspection from the outside suggests that the property may need extensive rebuilding," she said.
"Although this is a terrible thing to happen for our residents, homes can be rebuilt. We are just thankful that no human lives were lost."
Neighbours said it was fortunate the incident had not occurred at the weekend, when Wick Road was effectively inaccessible to emergency vehicles because of parked cars.
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