A MAN has been jailed for nearly three years after starting a fire from which he had to be helped semi-conscious to safety.

Pummy Sawhney gutted a bedroom at his former home in Ash Grove, Heston, after starting a fire in August last year.

The 28-year-old was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court last Friday (March 2) to 33 months behind bars after admitting arson being reckless as to whether life is endangered. He had already served 198 days of his sentence in custody,

Sawhney, who the court heard has a history of self-harm, was alone in his parents’ house when he set fire to the front bedroom on the evening of August 15 last year.

When his elder brother went to check on him he found smoke billowing from the upstairs windows.

Having bravely made his way through the thick black smoke, he felt a leg lying flat on the landing.

Sawhney was lying face down and was semi-conscious but his brother was able to rouse him and the two men walked to safety, uninjured.

When police arrived that evening, the court was told, Mr Sawhney had vanished. He returned just after 2am the next morning, his clothes reeking of smoke, and was arrested.

He initially claimed to have started the fire accidentally with a cigarette but later admitted the charge against him.