Four people were hospitalised and treated for smoke inhalation this morning after a fierce fire spread to several rooms of a house in St Dominic Street Sliema.
The fire, at 10.30a.m, is believed to have started from a heater.
A woman, 64 and her grandson, 2, were trapped in the house but were rescued by two men who forced open a door in an adjoining basement. The two men, a 68-year-old from Sliema and a 28-year-old from the Ivory Coast, were also hospitalised.
Two policemen who also assisted, were treated for smoke inhalation on the scene.
The elderly woman also suffered a fracture after jumping into a yard.
A number of neighbours tried to put out the fire using buckets of water before several fire engines arrived on the scene. The firemen entered the house wearing breathing apparatus.