HERO Darren Grant saved the life of a neighbour by leaping behind the wheel of a runaway truck seconds before it ploughed into her home.

Quick-thinking Darren was in his bedroom when he spotted the stolen 20-tonne tipper veering towards Jean Philipson's property.

Abandoned by the youths who had stolen it, the out-of-control vehicle was heading straight for the front room, where Jean's daughter, Simone, 22, was watching television.

Darren, 21, sprinted downstairs and jumped behind the wheel and managed to stop it before it hit the house in York.

Ms Philipson said: "Darren saved the day, he's our hero."

His heroics came after two boys stole the green tipper, then took it on a tour of the Tang Hall suburb at about 7.25pm on Sunday.

Several alarmed residents reported the dumper heading through the estate. The boys, believed to be as young as ten, dumped it after it smashed into a lamppost in Constantine Avenue.

One boy moved the steering wheel as he fled, setting it on a collision course for the house.

Sergeant Steve Snodgrass, of North Yorkshire Police, said the theft could have had more serious consequences. He said: "These boys have been very foolish and a danger to road users."