Chickenley pensioner saves neighbour from bungalow blaze

Graham Sharpe, 59, had taken a sleeping pill and gone to bed when he was woken up by knocking on his windows at around 1.45am last Thursday.

He opened his curtains to find neighbours Ken Auty and John Firth telling him his Chickenley home was ablaze.

The pair managed to pull Mr Sharpe through his bedroom window to safety just as the fire brigade arrived.

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Mr Auty, 70, said he only spotted the fire when he got up to make a cup of cocoa.

“I thought: ‘What’s that orange glow over there? It’s a funny time in the morning to be burning rubbish,’” he said.

For the full story, see this week’s Reporter.