Teenage boy rescues baby and elderly woman from burning house then puts out fire

Jack Wood praised for 'very brave, selfless act'

Jack has been hailed a hero by the local community (GoFundMe)

A 15-year-old schoolboy has been called a “credit to his community” after he rescued a baby and an elderly woman from a burning house before putting out the fire.

Jack Wood was on his way to school when he noticed smoke billowing out of the house across the road from his family's home in Carshalton, South London.

The teenager told his mother, Emma, to call the fire brigade before racing inside the house to rescue the one-year-old and the woman.

“I just wanted to get the baby and the gran out and make sure the fire was out,” Jack told The Croydon Advertiser. “I know the people who live there so I knew that there was a baby inside and that the gran might not be able to get out very quickly.

"So I ran in, got the baby out first, and then went back in to save the gran.”

Ms Wood said after Jack handed her the baby, he ran back inside to put the fire out with a bucket of water.

A fundraising web page set up after his effort, raised £600 for the teenager in under 18 hours – 200 per cent over target.

“This page is to raise some money for the young lad Jack that rescued a lady and one-year-old baby from a house fire and put it out,” it reads. “Not many 15 year olds would have the bravery to do this and we think that he should be rewarded and also be able to treat himself.”

The page calls on the local community to donate so Jack can buy himself “the latest games console, clothes, bike, or whatever it is he is into.”

Tributes to the teenager poured in alongside the donations, with one woman saying: “What an amazing young lad.”

Another wrote: “Well done Jack what a credit to your parents and the community. A very brave, selfless act.”

A spokesperson from the London Fire Brigade said: “One man, one woman, and one child were taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service with smoke inhalation."