A teenager is being hailed a hero after rescuing his baby sister during a late-night house fire in

Evesham.

Sixteen-year-old James and his brother Aaron, aged 13, were playing on their computer at about midnight when James smelt burning.

He opened the door and was greeted with a furious rush of smoke up the stairs.

He ran down and saw that the cooker was on fire, phoned the emergency services on his mobile phone, then rushed back upstairs to grab sleeping eight-month-old Cejay-Marie from her cot.

James then covered her head with a sheet, and dashed out of the house with Aaron.

He said: "Aaron went downstairs to make himself toast and a drink.

" He said he had turned the cooker off but he hadn't.

"When I looked in the kitchen the whole cooker was in flames.

"I just thought about Cejay, and we got out as quickly as we could."

Mother, Debbie Johns who was nearby at a neighbour's house at the time said: "I am very proud of the boys.

"I have always instilled in them what to do in case of fire and I'm just very glad they are all fine."

Aaron said: "I was very frightened, and I crawled low on the floor to get out because of the smoke.

"I will never put the cooker on late at night again."

Evesham's sub officer John Laurie said his officers were going back to the house to install fire alarms.

He said: "This was a very dangerous situation which could have ended in tragedy.

"The grill had set the grill pan alight.

"It contained aluminium foil and remnants of animal fat which produced the acrid smoke.

"Fire alarms would have alerted the children sooner. I can't believe that in this day and age there are still homes without them.

"Having said all that, the 16-year-old who was in charge did the right thing as soon as he realised there was a fire."

"This incident should serve as a warning to all parents and children."

Baby Cejay was taken to Evesham community Hospital for a check up, and afterwards declared fit and well.