A man who ran into a blazing house to rescue a mother of two from an upstairs bedroom deserves a medal, according to a neighbour.

The woman, who lives in Seventh Avenue, Manor Park, said the man ran into a house which caught fire on Wednesday night.

Sylvia Edwards said: “He was really brave. He got halfway up the stairs before the smoke forced him back.

“When he got to the bedroom, the door was locked so he had to kick in the door. He was covered in soot when he came out.

“He deserves a medal - he went in when everyone else was just watching. If it wasn’t for him she would be dead.”

Although Sylvia and other neighbours recalled seeing the man, describing him as a young, bearded Muslim, none of them knew his identity.

A crew from Ilford fire station tackled the fire, thought to have started in the front bedroom.

On arrival, they found that the children had left the house but the neighbour bravely entered to save the mother.

Mark Mills, Ilford fire station watch manager, said: “It was a serious enough fire. They didn’t have smoke alarms and she was feeling the effects of smoke inhalation.

“The kids came out the house. A neighbour was coming out his front door and he saw they were distressed.

“He went across the road and they told him there was a fire. So he went into the property.

“She was in the front bedroom where the fire occurred. There was quite a lot of smoke. He picked her up [off the floor] and carried her out.”

Firefighters gave the mother first aid and she was taken to hospital by ambulance.

The terraced house was partially damaged by the heat and smoke while the upstairs bedroom suffered 35 per cent fire damage.

If you are the mystery neighbour or you know who they are, contact the Recorder by calling 020 8478 4444 or email newsdesk@newhamrecorder.co.uk.