Lucky escape for family of five and their pets at Trinity Gardens following house fire

A family of five escaped injury after their home caught fire at Trinity Gardens on Saturday morning that caused $600,000 worth of damage. Their two turtles and cat also made it out safely.

Five occupants of a house fire on Aveland Ave at Trinity Gardens made it out safely. Picture: Kathryn Bermingham

A bluetooth speaker charging outside is believed to have sparked a large house fire in the eastern suburbs on Saturday morning.

Just before 9am, a family fled their burning home on Aveland Ave at Trinity Gardens.

Two pet turtles were later rescued by firefighters, while a cat managed to escape the inferno on its own.

Resident Shannan Burns, 30, said he was sleeping when the fire broke out.

“I ran outside with the hose and I tried to just squirt it out and it was way too big by that point,” he said.

“I decided to just drop the hose and (said) everybody get out, we ran outside and, in a couple of minutes, the whole house was pumping smoke.”

A family of five escaped their burning home at Trinity Gardens. Neighbours on either side also evacuated with fears it would spread. Picture: Kate Lambe/9 News

The family’s turtles, Yoshi and Squirtle, escaped the blaze. Picture: Kathryn Bermingham

Mr Burns said the family lives at the property with his wife’s parents, who built the home about 30 years ago.

Speaking to reporters out the front of the burning home, he said he was grateful it was fully insured.

“It is a big shock, trying to wake up my brain as well as deal with that is a big shock,” he said.

“It’s just trying to figure out where to go from here. A couple of days of hotels and sleeping on couches and hopefully insurance will be quick about it.”

The fire was extinguished quickly. Picture: Kathryn Bermingham

His daughter Hailey, 13, said she was relieved the turtles were ok.

“It’s very good news because my little brother was really worried about them,” she said.

“He started to cry so then I was just hoping that they were ok so that he wouldn’t be crying over it ... if he started crying then I would have probably started to cry too.”

A MFS spokeswoman said the cause of the fire was believed to be a bluetooth speaker that was charging outside at the back of the property, however the device’s battery was not the problem.

Police and 28 firefighters with six trucks extinguished the blaze. Police and paramedics also attended, with some neighbours evacuated and others watching from the front of their homes.

Damage is estimated at $600,000, according to the MFS.