Former Midlothian MP praises 'hero' firefighter who pulled her out window of burning Leith Walk building

Danielle Rowley was one of 11 people removed from the building in the early hours of Sunday.

Danielle Rowley was among 11 people rescued from the flats in Leith Walk on Sunday morning.

A former Midlothian MP has praised a "hero" firefighter who pulled her out the window of a burning building in Leith Walk.

Firefighters rescued 11 people after smoke filled the stairwell of the block of flats in the early hours of Sunday.

Residents were led to safety down a ladder from the four-storey tenement near a row of shops, with everyone give oxygen at the scene before two were taken to hospital for further treatment.

Among those rescued was former Midlothian MP Danielle Rowley.

In a tweet on Sunday, she wrote: "So this was terrifying but we’re all okay. The biggest ever thank you to the amazing fire, ambulance and police officers who helped us - especially the fireman who managed to pull me out a window and get me down a ladder to safety. The word hero here isn’t an exaggeration."

In a further tweet, the former Scottish Labour MP described the response of emergency services as "fast and reassuring" and that they "looked after us very well."

More than 30 firefighters were scrambled to the scene and the cause of the fire is being investigated.

The condition of those in hospital is not yet known.

On Sunday, a spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said they were called to the scene at about 1:10am on Sunday morning.

The spokeswoman said that nine appliances were sent and 11 people were removed from the building by ladder due to the presence of "heavy smoke" in a common stair.

She added: "The adult casualties were found to have suffered the effects of smoke inhalation with seven women and two men treated at the scene and two remaining men transferred to hospital."