A NSW community is rallying around a devastated family — and a teenage boy injured while rushing in to help — after a fierce house fire tore through a home and claimed the life of a child on Thursday afternoon.

The home on Northcote Ave at Swansea, south of Newcastle, was well alight when emergency services arrived about 1.30pm on Thursday, August 20.

A five-year-old child tragically died in the blaze.

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Another child escaped without injury but an elderly woman suffered serious burns and remains in hospital.

Family friends have launched a fundraiser for “Dierdre, Steve and the family” as they deal with the “heartbreaking loss of a beloved family member”.

The friends said the family is now beginning “the unimaginable journey of rebuilding their lives following this devastating event” and they wanted them to know “they are not facing this alone”.

They described Steve as “much more than a local resident … a well‑known musician, a lifelong member of the Swansea and Caves Beach community”, adding many locals had experienced “the warmth and character that make Steve such a valued member of our community”.

As well as losing a loved one, the friends said the fire destroyed the home that “has been at the heart of their lives for over 50 years”.

“Generations of memories were created within those walls.”

Extraordinary act of bravery

Sixteen‑year‑old Mace was passing the home when he saw the flames and “kicked through a window of the burning home and was able to save a young child”, according to a fundraiser which says he was injured in the process.

He and a 37-year-old man gained access to the property before emergency crews arrived.

“Mace suffered a serious achilles injury in which the tendon was nearly completely severed” and now faces emergency surgery and months of rehabilitation, according to the fundraiser.

“Mace showed incredible bravery. Now it’s our turn to show him that he isn’t alone,” it said.

Lake Macquarie Police District acting superintendent Lisa Jones praised his bravery, saying it was “a very selfless act by that young person and it shows the community spirit to come and try and help”.

Investigations into the fire remain ongoing.