A man who rescued fellow passengers from burning carriages and administered life-saving first aid after the Paddington rail disaster has received an MBE from the Queen.

Pat Blencoe-Jones was a passenger on the Great Western train which was involved in a crash at Ladbroke Grove with a Thames train in October 1999.

Despite injuries to himself he went to the assistance of distraught and frightened people and helped them from a severely-damaged carriage.

The 48-year-old, from Gloucester, then returned to the train, which was burning fiercely, to tackle the fire before being beaten back by the heat.

I was fortunate not to be killed in the Paddington train crash

Pat Blencoe-Jones

The London Underground revenue manager administered first aid to the injured and liaised with the fire services to offer the services of the tube's emergency response unit.

The MBE citation said: "His professionalism and caring approach were exemplified at the time of the Paddington train crash.

"His selfless, heroic and timely actions did much to minimise the loss of life and injury associated with this disaster."

Red light

Mr Blencoe-Jones was accompanied at the palace on Tuesday, by his wife Emma, his son Indiana, and his mother-in-law Pauline.

He said: "I am very honoured to receive an MBE from the Queen.

"I was fortunate not to be killed in the Paddington train crash. I just tried to do whatever I could to help people, by getting them out of the wreckage and giving them first aid."

Thirty-one people died and 500 were injured when a Thames train went through a red light and crashed almost head-on with a London-bound Great Western express at Ladbroke Grove, just outside Paddington in west London.