A grandmother risked her own life to save six children from her burning home in Gisborne last night.
The family was "moments from catastrophe," when the 66-year-old re-entered the burning house to rescue the children, aged 2 to 10 - three of whom were her grandchildren - a fire service investigator said.
The woman was woken by the sound of the blaze, but was unable to access the children - who were sleeping in a front room - from her bedroom at the back of the house.
![The scene of the fire. Photo / Murray Robertson, Gisborne Herald.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/ZS33HAEPYSA5HNZINC7JWG6FDI.jpg?auth=d91d2a61040819e7ed4fff5e1fc9c72de942f6845bf4955baeda1783b723ab33&width=16&height=12&quality=70&smart=true)
She ran outside to the front of the house, and entered the front room through a window, before passing the children outside to safety.