Firefighters rescue two trapped in burning house

Firefighters have rescued two people overnight after they arrived at a burning house at Red Beach, north of Auckland, and were told people were trapped.

One of the victims was in a serious condition in Middlemore Hospital and the other had moderate burns and was in the North Shore Hospital. Details were not available.

The Fire Service was called to the house in Red Beach Road about 1.30am to be told there were people in the bedroom of the burning house.

An ambulance was called as Silverdale volunteer firefighters wearing breath apparatus began searching the house and found the two victims.

The badly burnt victim was taken straight to Middlemore Hospital for treatment.

In another fire on the Te Atatu Peninsula, west Auckland, people were also reported to be trapped in a burning house. Two fire appliances attended and asked for a third fire appliance.

A Fire Service spokesman said the couple in the house were getting out, and soon after firefighters arrived everyone was accounted for and the alert was scaled down.

- NZPA