DOWNPATRICK residents involved in a dramatic early morning rescue from a burning building are lucky to be alive, a fire chief said yesterday.
Nine people - including a five month-old baby and 85 year-old man - escaped without serious injury after a wheelie bin was set alight out-side a ground floor flat at McLaughlin House in Saul Street early on Friday morning.
A total of 24 firefighters with breathing apparatus rescued eight people, with one resident able to make it to safety unaided.
"Two fire appliances and 24 fire-fighters were able to extinguish the fire very quickly, but the real worry was the thick, acrid smoke which engulfed the confined area, causing breathing difficulties and preventing people from seeing an escape route," James McAllister, southern area commander with the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service said.
"Three people were hospitalised due to severe smoke inhalation and others were treated by ambulance crews at the scene.
"We are extremely lucky that we are not dealing with loss of life today."
A 29-year-old man whose ground floor home was completely gutted, told how he crawled on his hands and knees to find a way through the "pitch blackness" before being led to safety by one of the "firefighter heroes".
"I am still in shock," Michael McKinney told The Irish News.
"I have lost everything and I had just finished re-decorating, but atleast I am alive.
"There was intense heat coming from the stairwell and then I heard a loud bang from glass breaking which made me jump out of bed.
"The whole place was in flames and I couldn't see anything because of the smoke. I was crawling about disorientated and didn't know what room I was in or how to get out. It was terrifying."
Meanwhile, the distraught parents of a five-month-old baby insisted they would not be returning to the building which has been targeted several times amid claims of anti-social behaviour.
Siobhan Magee (29), her 30 year-old partner PJ McCullough and their five-month-old daughter, Olivia, were taken to the Ulster Hospital, Dundonald, but discharged a short time later.
South Down SDLP MP Margaret Ritchie, whose constituency office is located close to McLaughlin House, yesterday urged the Housing Executive to repair damage as soon as possible.
"I spoke to residents who were cold, frightened and distressed, some of whom have been accommodated in a local hotel," she said.
"It is now important that the Housing Executive and the PSNI give priority to the early re-housing of these residents and ensure repairs are carried out as quickly as possible."
Detectives in Downpatrick have appealed for witnesses and anyone with any information to contact them.