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A nine-year-old Sydney boy has made an incredible escape after a fire started while he was home alone.
Christian Daubney smashed the front window of the two-storey townhouse with a metal pole to escape, and was helped by a local walking past on Rodley Avenue in Penrith in the city's west.
Mum Chelsea Daubney had gone to the shops with her two-year-old daughter, leaving Christian inside.
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"I locked the door behind me, making sure that no one could get in, thinking that he was nice and safe inside," she told 9News.
"I ducked around the corner. I was gone no longer than 10, 15 minutes and came back to my house engulfed in flames.
"My first thought being that my son was dead."
Christian told his mum he knocked over a candle.
"He tried to put it out and it got really high, so he tried to leave the front door but the front door was locked with the keys, so he couldn't get out," Daubney said.
"He ended up having to smash the window and he screamed for help. He thought he was going to die."
Other neighbours saw the blaze, unaware of the tragedy that had been avoided.
Emergency services arrived just before 6.15pm.
Christian was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics for cuts before he was taken to Nepean Hospital.
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Fire and Rescue NSW firefighter Anthony Sibary said the home was destroyed.
"There were no other damage to the adjoining properties," Sibary said.
Police said initial inquiries indicated the fire was not suspicious.
Fire investigators and scene-of-crime officers are working to determine if the candle left alight in the kitchen was the cause.
Daubney said it was likely her family lost everything and would need to start again.
Christian escaped with just a cut to his foot and was being spoiled with ice cream and toys in his hospital bed.
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