HEROIC health workers who helped evacuate almost 90 people from York Hospital and sedate a deranged arsonist who set fire to a ward have been rewarded for their bravery.

When staff nurses Eleanor Barley and Andrea Shirt heard their colleague Nichola Burdett shouting "Fire!" early on September 16, they rushed to her aid.

But nothing could have prepared them for the sight of Stefan Robert Yeomans, holding a knife and setting fire to a trolley in the Medical Admissions Unit.

Terrified, the nurses ran from the room to alert other colleagues to the blaze.

Andrea, 25, said Yeomans grabbed Nichola's uniform and cut her with the knife, before running through the hospital, throwing trolleys and equipment behind him.

As the nurses started to evacuate the unit, Dr Matthew Callister and security officer David Henderson set off in pursuit of Yeomans.

Mr Henderson wrestled Yeomans to the ground, before Dr Callister injected him with a sedative.

Almost 90 people were evacuated from the hospital that morning, including a three-month-old baby.

Now all five of the staff, together with healthcare assistant Jemma Gurden, have been given bravery awards by the Royal Humane Society.

Recalling the incident, Dr Callister, 32, said he chased Yeomans and sedated him at the bottom of a stairwell.

"My first thought when I came out was that it was something off Casualty, something completely unreal that you never have to deal with," Dr Callister said.

"It was all so completely unexpected.

"The teamwork in terms of medical and nursing staff was absolutely phenomenal, and it's a great honour to get an award."

Eleanor Barley, 23, who had only been a qualified nurse for six months at the time of the fire, said the flames spread to the curtains and around the door.

"Once the doors were shut it was actually quite contained, but the smoke was really bad," she said. "We just got on with it and evacuated everyone but afterwards we had to go round with sheets of paper asking people where they were from; then it all started to sink in and it hit us what had actually happened."

Security officer David Henderson said all the nurses had been real heroes.

He said: "A lot of people call nurses angels and in my opinion they were all angels that night."

Chief executive Jim Easton said the fire had been extremely dangerous and frightening.

"Incidences of physical assault in hospitals are very frightening indeed and fires can be very terrifying and dangerous."

He said: "The staff deserve recognition for their valour in helping to save lives and prevent injury and we are very proud of them."

York MP Hugh Bayley presented the awards.

Updated: 10:00 Thursday, March 31, 2005