A SEVEN-year-old boy has been hailed 'a hero' after his actions helped save him and his father from a house fire.

Harry Monaghan, aged seven, woke up to the smell of smoke at his home in Canning Street, Bury, at about 6am.

And when the youngster opened his door to investigate, he was faced with a cloud of black smoke.

Noticing something was wrong, he rushed to his father's bedroom to wake him up.

The pair then took refuge in the upstairs bedroom and called the fire service.

Firefighters arrived at the terraced house minutes later and dramatically rescued them before extinguishing the fire, which was confined to the kitchen, and is believed to have been caused by a cooker that was not turned off properly.

Harry and his dad Neil, aged 50, then received immediate medical attention from firefighters before being checked over by paramedics.

Harry, who is a pupil at St Joseph and St Bede RC Primary, said: “I just smelt smoke. I opened my door and checked and saw smoke everywhere.

“I held my breath and banged on my dad’s door."

Describing how the incident unfolded, Mr Monaghan added: “I was in bed asleep. He came and banged on my door saying ‘there’s smoke’.

“The whole of the landing was black. I dragged him in my room, shut the door behind us and we rang the fire brigade. I have not stopped shaking.

“I am so grateful for him being so brave and not panicking. He is my little superhero.

"The fire brigade were brilliant, too. I was nervous, but as soon as they arrived I knew it would be fine.

“The neighbours have all offered to help us out and have given Harry some clothes because everything is smoke damaged."

Firefighters who attended the scene also praised the actions of Harry, who says his favourite TV show is Fireman Sam, and hailed him ‘a hero’.

Pete Fletcher, watch manager at Bury Fire Station, added: "This little lad has given his dad the best Father's Day present imaginable. It was him that smelt it and alerted his dad.

“It could have been a whole lot worse. If he had not woken up it would have been a whole different story.

"They shut the door, put a towel at the bottom, as you are supposed to do, and rang us. They then stood at the front window, so they could get some fresh air, and waited for us.

"There was a smoke alarm fitted but it was due a replacement so did not go off.

"If anyone requires a smoke alarm fitting or replacing, we provide a free service so do not hesitate to call us on 0800 555 815."

The fire, which is currently under investigation, has caused considerable damage to the kitchen and left much of the rest of the house with smoke damage.

Luckily, Harry's intended Father’s Day gift, a Dairy Milk chocolate bar, remained unscathed.

And after the pair had got over the initial shock of what happened, he presented it to his father later in the morning.