Historic Kangaroo Point home to be demolished after house fire

Brisbane City Council has approved the demolition of a historic house that gained worldwide notoriety after its owner said he was saved by his parrot when it was ravaged by fire. But the cause still remains unknown.

Anton Nguyen applied to demolish his house which burnt down in November 2020. Photos: ABC/ Felicity Ripper

Brisbane City Council has approved the demolition of a historic Kangaroo Point home ravaged by a fire which authorities never determined the cause of.

A piece of Brisbane’s history went up in flames on November 4 last year when Anton Nguyen’s Salstone St home burnt to its bare bones.

The homeowner made headlines across the globe after telling reporters his parrot saved his life.

The council on Tuesday granted Mr Nguyen’s application to tear down the remains of the double-storey house believed to be more than a century old.

The house at 22 Salstone St, Kangaroo Point.

He submitted an engineering report which found several components of the home were in an irreplaceable condition including the roofing material, roof framing, external and internal wall framing, floorboards, internal stairs and external deck and stairs.

“The remaining sub-floor structure, concrete columns and foundations can be considered to be in an adequate condition and can be considered to be able to be re-used,” the report stated.

Police and firefighters at a house fire in Salstone Street in Kangaroo Point. Pic Peter Wallis

Urban planner with the council Rowena Sheard said Mr Nguyen had demonstrated that the house was not reasonably capable of being made structurally sound, meeting the outcomes of the traditional building character (demolition) overlay code.

She wrote to Mr Nguyen regarding his success on Tuesday.

But the Kangaroo Point man’s bid wasn’t passed without some scrutiny from members of the community.

The application received two anonymous submissions in strong opposition of the demolition, claiming there was enough of the structure remaining for the house to be repaired and retained.

Police and firefighters at the house fire. Pic Peter Wallis

“Owning a double block and then suddenly having a fire should not be grounds for the demolition of a pre 1911 house with significant character and cultural significance to the area,” one person wrote.

“This house was built for Lord Mayor Raymond who Raymond park was named after, it is an important icon in the local area.”

Due to the application being code assessable, submitters are not entitled to appeal the decision.

Records show Mr Nguyen and his partner Linh Pham bought the home in 2016.

A sale listing at the time said the home was part of a deceased estate and had remained in the same family since 1947.

Five fire crews arrived to find the home “well involved” about 2am on November 4, 2020 and the cause of the fire was never determined.

Anton Nguyen's parrot, Eric, alerted him to the fire when he squawked his owner's name. Picture: ABC

Mr Nguyen credited his bird Eric for alerting him to danger by squawking his owner’s name.

“Eric my parrot, he started to yell, so I woke up and I smelt a bit of smoke,” Mr Nguyen told the Today show.

“I grabbed Eric, opened the door and looked to the back of the house and saw some flames.”

Mr Nguyen was assessed at the scene but did not require hospitalisation.

The demolition approval is valid until September 2023 and Mr Nguyen is required to apply for another development permit to carry out building work.

His town planner has not responded to requests for comment about the future of the site.