A FAMILY whose house was devastated in a dramatic blaze on Saturday night say they were lucky to get out.

Deborah Oloko-Alli and her two-year-old son Immanuel escaped the fire in Great Lever unharmed, while her mother Miriam, aged 57, suffered only minor burns to her arm.

Fire crews from Bolton Central and Farnworth were called to Rishton Lane at 6.50pm on Saturday after the blaze was sparked by lit candles that were left unattended in an attic room.

Mrs Oloko-Alli, aged 30, said: “We are just so grateful that we have all made it out of there okay and we have come to thank all of our neighbours for what they did for us on Saturday night.

“It was such a shock to see. We were downstairs and then we thought we could smell something burning. I was so surprised when I looked in the attic and saw the fire. I just didn’t know how it could have got so big and out of control.

“We keep most of our clothes in the attic so they have been destroyed, but the important thing is that we are all okay.”

The second floor attic room suffered extensive fire damage and crews spent around three hours at the property, which had no working smoke alarms fitted.

A neighbour called the fire service after crowds of people surrounded the house, with emergency services arriving just in time to stop the blaze spreading to the surrounding buildings.

Saila Shabir, who runs the shop next door, said: “I was inside and didn’t even know what was going on until I heard the crowds of people around it.

“They were all stood there with their phones making videos and I couldn’t believe that nobody had called the fire service yet.

“Thankfully somebody finally did and it was just in time, because when the fire engines arrived the attic window had just blown out.

“If the firefighters hadn’t arrived when they did then it would have spread to the house next door and to our shop.

“I’m glad everyone made it out of the house because it was such a terrible fire and could have been a lot worse.”

On Sunday, fire crews issued a warning about the dangers of leaving lit candles out.

Watch manager Tony McKenna said: “We would like to make sure everyone is fully aware of the dangers of leaving lit candles out. It’s a very important message and you can see here what the potential damage can be.

“There were also no working smoke alarms in the property. We will be running a campaign in the area on the importance of having a working smoke alarm, and I would urge anyone who wants an alarm fitted to contact us.”