A mother "would have died" had it not been for the actions of her quick-thinking daughter.
The 11-year-old girl calmly doused her mother's clothes with water after discovering they had caught fire during a blaze at their home.
Fire crews from Braintree and a paramedic team were sent to the incident, in Shalford Road, Duckend Green, near Rayne, at about 8pm on Sunday evening.
Steve Colmer, emergency care practitioner, said: "The 35-year-old woman was in a downstairs room.
"It is not clear exactly what happened, but when I arrived less than five minutes after the call, I found the woman in a smoke-filled room with very serious burns.
"I managed to get the rest of the smouldering material off the woman and started treating her."
He added: "I am in no doubt that had it not been for the actions of her daughter, this woman would have died. "
The woman is currently being treated in the burns department at Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford, with burns to her upper body and right leg. Her condition has been described as "stable".
A fire service investigation into the cause of the blaze is under way, but Mr Colmer said it was still not clear what happened.
More in today's Evening Gazette
Published Tuesday, November 16, 2004
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