Around 3am last night, Athlone Fire Brigade were forced to break down a front door of a house in order to rescue a man who was asleep in his burning house.
The man has been left with serious injuries, but the situation would have been tragic other than the actions of the Fire Service.
Gardai were on the scene but were unable to help the man as they needed the Fire Brigade and their equipment to break down the door.
The man is said to be in a critical condition in hospital.