A PREGNANT woman feared she would go into labour as she ran through a fireball which ripped through her Droitwich flat.

Clothes for her unborn baby were the only items left unscathed after the blaze, which forced mum-to-be Kerry Richards to flee the first-floor flat in her nightie.

The terrified 18-year-old, whose baby is due in just three weeks, was woken by the smell of smoke in the early hours of yesterday.

As she ran into the kitchen of her Charland Court flat, she was confronted by a "ball of flames" coming from a saucepan of oil which she had left on the electric stove after cooking dinner.

Fleeing down the stairwell, she shouted out for help.

Her partner Lee Day, who was out walking their dogs, ran back to help her.

The brave 20-year-old then sprinted back through the thick, black smoke to rouse other residents who were still asleep.

The two were eventually given the all clear at Worcestershire Royal Hospital and are now hoping to rebuild their lives after being given another flat by Droitwich Spa and Rural Housing Association, which owns the properties, off Shepherds Rise.

"I was really in shock and I thought I was about to go into labour," said Miss Richards.

"I was in bed and my partner went downstairs to take the dogs for a walk.

"The next thing I knew I could feel smoke in my nostrils.

"I couldn't breathe, and then I saw a ball of flames coming from the kitchen.

"Only the baby's room and things have been left untouched. Everything else we own has just gone."

Miss Richards said the cooker had been switched off, but the pan of oil continued to heat up while the electric rings cooled down.

Fire crews from Worcester and Droitwich used breathing apparatus to deal with the kitchen fire, which began just after 1.40am.

It is not the first time the flats have suffered a blaze. Residents were evacuated from a major fire in the block in the spring, last year.