A PENSIONER has died and her son was last night in hospital following a fire at their home.

Firefighters were called to Honister Place, Newton Aycliffe, County Durham just before 1pm yesterday following reports of smoke and people trapped inside the house.

The pensioner, a 65-yearold woman, and her 37-yearold son were rescued and taken to Darlington Memorial Hospital by ambulance, but the woman later died.

The man, who is not believed to be seriously hurt, remained in hospital last night under observation.

Durham Police and County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service are carrying out a joint investigation into the blaze.

Steve Wharton, of the fire and rescue service, said a number of properties were evacuated as a precaution.

He said: “We received multiple calls from the area saying there was a lot of smoke coming from the house and dispatched appliances from Newton Aycliffe, Darlington and Bishop Auckland.

“When they arrived, they found that there was a man visible in one of the windows, who we were able to walk down the ladder.

“It became clear that there was another person trapped in the house, but due to the severity of the fire it wasn’t possible to get anybody else out using the ladder.”

Mr Wharton said eight firefighters were able to get into the house using breathing apparatus.

The fire was put out by 3.30pm, but the house was severely damaged by fire and smoke.

The Northern Echo knows the identities of the two victims, but is withholding publication until next of kin have been informed at the request of the police.

Mr Wharton said it was too early to establish the cause of the blaze, but he expected the investigation to begin today once the site had been made safe.

He said firefighters were working in the community to reassure the public, but if anybody had concerns about fire safety they should call brigade headquarters, on 0845-305-8383, to arrange a free fire safety check.