THE heroic actions of a County Durham man saved his best friend's life after a chip pan caught fire while he slept.

Terry Lee Winter, 20, was passing Mick Morrow's house in Barnard Avenue, Ludworth, near Wheatley Hill, at about 6pm on Monday when he heard a smoke alarm.

He saw the house was full of smoke and knew Mick, 35, would be asleep, so he banged on the door, and smashed the bedroom window by throwing a brick through it, but still there was no response.

A crowd had gathered outside, and people were telling Terry not to go into the house, but he kicked the door down and, using a pillow to protect himself from the thick black smoke inside, made his way to the kitchen.

"They said Mick would be dead, but I had to check - he's my best mate - so I took the chance and went in," he said.

Terry has known the Morrow family all his life. Mick's daughter, Leanne, is his girlfriend and he hopes they may become engaged later this year.

Having switched the cooker off and thrown the chip pan outside, Terry ran upstairs to find Mick.

"There was smoke all over the house and I kept having to stop to get breaths of air out of the windows," he said.

Mick was asleep on his bed, so Terry put him on his shoulders and carried him out. Terry said: "The fireman said if I had been ten minutes later Mick could have died."

Mick said he accidentally left the chip pan on and had gone to bed: "I'm lucky to be here. Terry saved my life by carrying me out of there. The kitchen's all burnt and half the living room."

Neither of them needed hospital treatment after the fire.

A spokesman for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue said: "We don't recommend people risk their lives by entering burning buildings, because the fumes from house fires are deadly."

He said chip pans should not be left unattended and people should regularly check that their smoke alarms were working.

Anyone wanting advice on smoke alarms can contact the brigade on 0191-332 4311.