Camp Hill horror: Three children, one man dead in ‘horrific incident’ on Brisbane street
A senior detective has told of the scene that greeted him and his officers in the aftermath of a shocking car fire that turned a once-quiet suburban Brisbane street into the stuff of nightmares.
QLD News
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SHOCKED witnesses have told of seeing a woman on fire leap out of a burning car screaming “he’s poured petrol on me” at the scene of a devastating incident in which three children under the age of 10 and an adult male have died.
The woman, identified as Hannah Baxter, is in a critical condition in hospital, while the man, Rowan Baxter, died at the scene Raven St in Camp Hill along with the three children, Laianah, Aaliyah and Trey.
The car had been deliberately set on fire.
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The Courier-Mail can reveal Mr Baxter is a former NZ Warriors player and worked as a fitness coach.
It’s understood the family had previously been reported to child safety as well, due to family violence issues.
There’s no suggestion Hannah was violent.
A major crime investigation is under way in the southside suburb, with a senior detective reporting it was one of the worst crime scenes he’d attended in his career.
Witnesses reported a car exploding into flames, with screams and calls for help heard as people rushed to assist but were unable to get close due to the intensity of the fire.
One man who lives about 20 metres from where the car ended up told The Australian he had spoken to other witnesses who saw the incident unfold.
“According to them this vehicle that’s obviously burnt pulled up beside them and the lady yelled out, ‘he’s poured petrol on me’,” he said, choking back tears.
“Next minute, about four other explosions. Apparently there’s some young kids in the car.
“By that time you couldn’t get near the vehicle, unless you had a proper suit on, you were just no hope.
“Some young trade blokes down the road (said) they came and out (with) some timber or something to stop the vehicle going further because it actually rolled across the road from here to there.
“The young lady was rolling on the footpath in flames.”
One neighbour who witnessed a Good Samaritan attempting to help Hannah described her condition following the car explosion.
“She was awake and conscious and completely aware of what had happened,” the man said.
“Skin was peeling off her, and she held her hands up... bits were hanging off. It was really quite horrific.”
One man was outside washing his car when the car caught alight across the street.
A neighbour has told The Courier-Mail the man rushed across the road with his hose and a bucket of water to offer assistance.
The Good Samaritan is said to have hosed down Hannah, who was the only survivor from the car.
There are several areas of interest for police, however at this stage the scene of the car remains the only crime scene, although it’s likely police would declare other crime scenes throughout the day.
Detective Inspector Mark Thompson told media: “At approximately 8.30 this morning, emergency services were called to Raven St in relation to a vehicle that was on fire.
“Five people that were involved in the fire inside the vehicle
“I can confirm that we have three deceased children inside the vehicle under the age of 10.
“(One of the) complications that we have ... is to positively identify the victims that we have.
“We have extensively doorknocked the entire area.
“Anyone who lives in the vicinity of Raven and Pryde streets, if they can contact the Queensland police ... if they heard anything or saw anything.”
He said it was one of the worst crime scenes he’d attended in his career.
“It’s a horrific scene,” he said.
“It will be a horrific thing for police and emergency services to deal with in the coming days.
“We’ve all got different experiences in life. I’ve seen some horrific scenes, this is up there with the (worst) of them.
“It’s a terrible thing to be presented with but we will work through it.”
Det Insp Thompson said police were yet to examine the inside of the vehicle, and the cause of the fire was still being determined.
“We still haven’t got into that vehicle,” he said.
“It’s too early to go into that vehicle.”
Det Insp Thompson would not confirm whether it was being treated as a murder-suicide.
“How the fire actually occurred has not been ascertained at the moment. For us to call it a murder-suicide or an accident is not appropriate at the moment,” he said.
One resident told The Courier-Mail he could hear screams from his nearby home around 8:15am before he ran to the scene.
“I had people working at my house and we could hear screams and calls for help,” said the man, who lives in the street behind the scene of the incident.
“The flames were huge, absolutely insane. We had to stand back because the firefighters were rushing in.
“I’m so sad, so very, very sad to hear it’s kids.
“I just wonder who they are and why they were there. It’s a very emotional time for our neighbourhood.”
The man said he had only lived in the area for three months, and said his neighbourhood was quiet and full of families.
A neighbour a couple of houses away from the incident said she heard the explosion.
“I was lying in bed and I heard a loud bang, the house sort of vibrated like something hit my roof,” she said.
“Flames were so high in the air, it was absolutely unbelievable, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
She said she was sick when she left her house to see what was going on.
“Then there was this smell, I can’t quite explain it, but it was terrible and it lingered around,” she said.
Murray Campbell, who lives on the street where the incident occurred said he heard it before racing out to see what had happened.
“Lots of neighbours came out and there were lots of people on the street,” he said.
“I saw multiple explosions, they were very loud like a gas cylinder exploding.”
Queensland Ambulance Service senior operations supervisor Adrian Tong said the first crew that arrived on scene were confronted with the car still well ablaze, and several people dead on arrival.
First responders have been stood down from duty today while they debrief the tragic incident that unfolded in front of them.
“I’ve worked for the ambulance for a long time and I’d rather we didn’t go to these sorts of scenes too often.”
“All of the crews that attended have been stood down at another location and they won’t be required for duty today.
“They’ll be offered peer support and maybe some ongoing counselling over the next few days.”
Horrified and devastated by what’s happened at Camp Hill this morning.
— Terri Butler MP (@terrimbutler) February 19, 2020
My condolences to family, friends and the entire community.
Det Insp Thompson said it was likely police would declare other crime scenes throughout the day.
“At this stage, there are other areas of interest to us, I anticipate there will be another crime scene or two that will be declared,” he said.
“It’s very important for us to make sure that we obtain a full and complete picture of what occurred here today.”
He said emergency services workers and police confronted by the” horrific” scenes would be would be offered support.
“Our people are well trained they will put that behind them in the short term and deal with investigation at hand and we will make sure that their welfare fair is looked after into the future,” he said.
Police Minister Mark Ryan informed MPs in Parliament of the incident.
“Today is a very sad day,” he said.
“I have just been informed by the Police Commissioner that three people have died, including children, in a horrific incident at Camp Hill this morning.
“All emergency services are on scene.
“The situation is at a very early stage. I am informed that police are investigating all of the circumstances surrounding this tragic set of events.”
Terri Butler, the Federal Member for Griffith, which covers Camp Hill, said she was “horrified and devastated by what’s happened”.
“My condolences to family, friends and the entire community,” she said.
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner along with his wife Nina and local Councillor for Coorparoo Ward Fiona Cunningham visited the scene of the incident.
The trio left three teddy bears and bunches of flowers as they cried and hugged at the crime scene.
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