Camp Hill car fire: Witnesses tell of traumatic scenes as three children, one man dead

As she lay on the ground, burning while a neighbour doused her with water, Hannah Baxter caught the eye of a witness to the horrific deaths of her children in a car set alight by her estranged husband, and he says it is a look he will never forget.

A WITNESS to the horrific scenes on a quiet suburban Brisbane street has told of the look in the eye of a burning woman as she lay on the ground, being hosed down by a bystander, after jumping out of a torched car in which her three children died.

Hannah Baxter had been heard screaming “he’s poured petrol on me” as she leapt out of the deliberately lit car, with traumatised witnesses reporting seeing skin peeling away from her body.

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Her three children, aged two, three and five, all died at the scene, along with a man, identified as Rowan Baxter, a former contracted player with NRL side the New Zealand Warriors.

Witness Andrew Sinclair, who was working from home about 100 metres away from the incident, said the look on Hannah Baxter’s face is one that will stay with him for a long time.

“She was looking directly at me, just staring,” Mr Sinclair said.

“The look of hurt looking straight at me, and seeing her clothing being burnt with her skin coming off her body, it was an awful thing to see.”

Hannah Baxter and her son Trey, who died alongside his sisters in the car fire at Camp Hill. Photo: Facebook

Mr Sinclair said he first thought the noise was his neighbour’s smoke alarm, before he realised a tragic incident was unfolding just along his street.

“I thought I better see what was happening, so I proceeded up the street. It was confronting when I realised, because the woman at that time from the vehicle had exited.

“She was in active wear which was severely burnt.

“She was upright, standing with her hands spread open to let the water take its full effect. A very kind lady was hosing her down, I don’t know who she is but it was a great act of kindness, and that woman is a champion of our neighbourhood for doing that while being confronted with everything.”

Resident Andrew Sinclair says he will never forget the look in Hannah Baxter’s eyes. Picture: AAP image, John Gass

Mr Sinclair said he’d never expect to see such a heart breaking incident in Brisbane’s suburbia and likened it to something he’d expect to see in warfare.

“For those that were here, their scars will last a long time in our tight knit community.”

Another local told of the horrifying scene on Raven Street in Camp Hill as the woman leapt screaming from the car, which was deliberately set alight, shouting “he’s poured petrol on me”. She is now in hospital in a critical condition.

Hannah Baxter and Rowan Baxter with kids Laianah, Aaliyah and Trey. Image from Facebook

One neighbour who witnessed a Good Samaritan attempting to help Ms Baxter 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.”

The man who came to her aid in hospital suffering burns.

Murray Campbell, a local, said he heard multiple explosions. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Detective Inspector Mark Thompson said it was among 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.”

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,” the man, lives in the street behind the incident said.

“The flames were huge, absolutely insane. We had to stand back because the fire fighters 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.

Police at the scene on Raven St in Camp Hill. Picture: Steve Pohlner

“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.”

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.

The car fire on Raven Street, Camp Hill. Picture: ABC

“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 on flames.”

The incident is being treated as a homicide.