A 70-YEAR-OLD woman was airlifted to hospital suffering from severe burns after a blaze broke out in her flat.
Paramedics from the Yorkshire Air Ambulance whisked Patricia Ludolph to James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough after the fire at Sturdy Court in Kirkbymoorside on Sunday afternoon.
It is thought the blaze was started by a lit cigarette but fire officers are still investigating the cause. She has since been transferred to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Newcastle.
Police and fire crews evacuated nearby flats but nobody else was injured in the blaze, which was reported at 12.40pm.
A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police based in Malton said the casualty needed to be given mouth-to-mouth resuscitation before the air ambulance arrived at the scene.
He said: "The elderly occupant suffered severe burns and we do not know the cause of the fire at this time. Officers at the scene said the elderly lady was very poorly.
"A lady from a flat below was evacuated to safety and the area was cordoned off by police officers."
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