A quick-thinking 11-year-old has been hailed a hero after he saved a 74-year-old man from a smoke-filled flat.

Finn Elias was passing by the apartment block in Hoyerswerda, Saxony state, Germany when he saw thick smoke billowing from the apartment block on Saturday, 23rd September.

After calling firefighters, he waited on the doorstep to help rescuers pinpoint the apartment.

Firefighters in respirator gear rushed into the hallway of the building and broke into the resident’s flat.

Upon entering, they found him trapped in the flat after setting his dinner on fire in the kitchen, after which they instantly led him to safety.

Paramedics later rushed him to hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation.

Saxony Police spokesperson Sven Moeller said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “Finn Elias received the rescue workers and briefed them on the incident.

“The 74-year-old tenant had burned his food on the stove.”

Local firefighters thanked Finn for his rescue in a special ceremony on Wednesday, 25th October after a guided tour of emergency headquarters.

Finn was also handed a number of gifts among which a shopping mall voucher by the Hoyerswerda Fire Department.

Officers Tobias Hilbert and Rene Zshiesche said: “Thanks to his courageous and quick actions, something bad was prevented.

“This was followed by a tour of the Hoyerswerda Police Station and the Integrated Regional Control Centre for East Saxony.”