Firefighters at the flat in Parliament Hill

NEIGHBOURS of a carpenter who died after a fire destroyed his home have praised a group of have-a-go heroes who risked their lives by rushing to his rescue as the flat went up in flames.

Luke Thomson, 67, died last Tuesday, a day after a blaze broke out in his ground-floor home in Parliament Hill, by the entrance to Hampstead Heath.

Two labourers from CT Build Contractors working on a house opposite ran inside and carried Mr Thomson out to the street before the fire brigade arrived. He was rushed to hospital but died the next day.

An 82-year-old man was among a group of residents who helped smash in the windows as thick black smoke billowed out. And neighbours have come together to offer up space in their homes to other residents of the building who have had to move out because of the blaze.

Jane O’Rourke, a child and family psychotherapist who lives opposite the flat, said: “The fire had really taken hold in a very, very short period of time. Within five minutes the whole flat was ablaze.

“The builders came rushing out and went straight into the house. What they did, they put their lives at risk.”

Ms O’Rourke said she helped the other people affected by the fire, adding: “I leant them clothing and I gave them something to eat and drink. But I think maybe just what they needed was some TLC because I think they were in a lot of shock.”

She said she used her psychotherapy skills to help the builders process the traumatic incident.

Mr Thomson’s next-door neighbour, who did not want to be named, described the fire as “big, major”, adding: “The builders opposite and whoever was involved in trying to get into the flat were kind of like heroes.

“I’m not sure I would have had the guts to go in, frankly. If it hadn’t been for them, probably things would have been much worse, even for the other people living in the building.”

He added: “It’s just really sad. Just really, really sad.”

The New Journal understands Mr Thomson had run a carpentry business with his relative. Land Registry documents show how he had bought the lease to the flat in 2021.

Another resident, James Knowles, said: “It was a beautiful, blue crystal sky day so it seemed bizarre to have billowing black smoke pouring out of the place. I saw one of the residents, a friend of mine, sitting outside on a gate post in her PJs. I spent the rest of the day with her – paramedics took her to the Royal Free as a precaution and she stayed with us until Saturday.”

Some people were concerned that Mr Thomson was left for too long on the pavement with severe burns.

But the London Ambulance Service said their first paramedic arrived less than five minutes from the emergency call coming in. A spokesperson said: “We sent a number of resources to the scene, including two ambulance crews, an incident response officer and an advanced paramedic.

“We treated five people, one of whom was taken to a major trauma centre. Three patients were taken to a local hospital and one was discharged at the scene.”

Police said the cause of the fire is not being treated as suspicious. A file is being prepared for the coroner.

The London Fire Brigade said they were called to the fire last Monday at 11.30am and the fire was out by 12.56pm, adding: “A ground-floor flat was destroyed by the fire. One man was rescued from the building before the arrival of the brigade. He was taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service crews, where he sadly later died.”