Three women leap from blazing flat

A fourth woman was rescued by West Yorkshire firefighters from a second floor window.

Neighbours piled up several mattresses on the ground for the women to jump onto.

The women, all aged 27 and friends from university, had met at the flat in Castle Lodge Avenue in Rothwell, Leeds, for a reunion and to discuss wedding plans when a candle set the bathroom on fire.

A candle placed on the bath had burned through and set fire to the bath tub.

The incident happened shortly before 9pm on Saturday.

The fire service said the neighbours did a "fantastic job" in helping the women escape and are being recommended for an award.

He said: "Three people are alive today thanks to the neighbours and the fire service controller who gave advice over the phone. It could have been a totally different outcome."

He said the fire service did not recommend jumping as a method of escape and he also urged people not to use candles, or to use ceramic containers if they did use them. "This fire was 100 per cent preventable," he added.

It is believed that the trapped women dropped almost 10 metres.

Three of the women were released from Leeds General Infirmary after treatment. One woman remains in hospital, although her injuries are not thought to be life threatening.

The flat was fitted with smoke detectors and they worked properly.

The women are believed to be from Leeds, Chester, London, and Norwich.