A 72-year-old man Brisbane has died and his 71-year-old wife has been saved by a neighbour who says he is "no hero" after a fire engulfed the elderly couple's home late last night.
Mick Schmidt raced to help the pair after he was woken by neighbours bashing on his front window about 10:00pm, before firefighters arrived at the Acacia Ridge home.
"I was sound asleep," he said.
"They said 'the old people's house is on fire' and I know … [them] very well.
"I just raced straight over, straight in the front door looking for [the woman] first off.
"The room [her husband] was in was fully engulfed.
"I tried to go in there but the flames just pushed me back.
"There was black toxic smoke coming out of everywhere."
Mr Schmidt said the woman "hysterical to an extent".
"She was going '[he's] in there, [he's] in there'," he said.
"And I said that 'you got to get out of here'.
"She was not in a good way, she was hysterical to an extent.
"It felt good to get her out of there and I wish I could have got him out of there.
"Things were exploding inside."
'I would be a hero if I could have saved him'
Once outside, Mr Schmidt grabbed his garden hose, running it through a window, and two fire extinguishers to try to douse the flames.
Other neighbours were also helping.
Despite his efforts, Mr Schmidt, 56, said he was "no hero".
"I've just done what any normal Australian person would do for their fellow man," he said.
"What else can you do but try?
"If I had gotten Ricky out, then I would have said yes to being a hero.
"They're a beautiful couple, I've got a lot of respect and time for them.
"He was a beautiful Scotsman.
"I'm a bit shook up by it."
Mr Schmidt and the woman he saved were both treated in hospital for minor injuries.
'We put it out twice'
Another neighbour, Dean Hollis, said there were panicked and chaotic scenes after the flames broke out.
"Everyone was running around trying to put the fire out," he said.
"We put it out twice but it just kept igniting all the time."
Mr Hollis said he knew the family well.
"They've been there for about 15 years, I feel sorry for their son," Mr Hollis said.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Service Inspector Timothy Clark said four crews worked to put out the blaze, which was mainly contained to one room.
"They were confronted with flames coming out of a side window and lots of smoke emitting from other windows," Inspector Clark said.
"[There were] a lot of local residents trying to help."
A crime scene has been established as the cause of the fire is investigated.
