A 6-YEAR-OLD girl had a lucky escape when she was locked up in her home as a fire broke out in an apartment below, the Daily Sunshine reported yesterday.

The fire on the Liyangtianxia housing estate in Futian District was extinguished before it reached the girl’s home.

The fire burned for more than an hour, during which time the girl and her pet dog risked being suffocated by smoke, the newspaper said.

She was rescued when a 3-year-old boy saw the fire and alerted his mother, who then called firefighters.

Initial investigations showed that the fire began in a washing machine on the balcony of the flat. It spread inside, destroying all the furniture in the flat which was empty at the time.

The girl said her mother had locked the door as usual when she left for work, returning to cook her meal at noon, but she was late on this occasion.

“Suddenly I smelt burning and saw smoke. I could not get out, and the dog was barking. I was very scared,” the girl told the newspaper. (Deng Hanneng)