Child killed, woman, kids fighting for life after inferno
Heroic attempts by neighbours to break windows and rescue kids from a horrific inferno that has left one child dead and others fighting for their life unfolded on Wednesday morning. VIDEO, PICTURES
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A child has died after a horror fire engulfed a Toowoomba home overnight with six people managing to escape thanks to the heroic help of neighbours.
Emergency services were initially called to the Harristown blaze around 12.30am to reports the Merritt Street address was on fire.
The house was fully engulfed at the time before firefighters were able to bring it under control.
Six people were able to escape the property following the fire, including a 34-year-old man, a 36-year-old woman, and four children.
Neighbours broke windows in an attempt to free the children from the home.
One witness who phoned Triple-0 said the home was fully engulfed by the time he ended the call.
The woman and two children have been taken to Toowoomba Hospital with critical injuries before being transported to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, and two children have been taken to the Queensland Children's Hospital in a critical condition.
The man was also taken to Toowoomba Hospital with serious injuries.
Child killed, woman, kids fighting for life after inferno
Authorities confirmed on Wednesday a child had died after being reported missing in the blaze.
Among the others injured were a female toddler and one primary school-aged girl with significant burns who were both listed by Queensland Ambulance Service in a life-threatening condition.
One man in his 30s with significant arm injuries was in a potentially life-threatening condition.
One neighbor said the family moved into the street recently.
“They were just a regular family,” he said.
“We were half asleep when it was kicking and we came out to have a look, but there was nothing we could do.
The family’s dog survived the fire and was being cared for by a neighbor.
A primary school-aged boy with burns was taken in a stable condition to hospital, while another teenage boy with a hand injury was in a stable condition.
The primary school-aged boy, the teenage boy, and the man in his 30s remain in a stable condition in Toowoomba Hospital.
A crime scene has been declared, with a heavy police presence along the suburban street as about a dozen detectives went house to house, interviewing witnesses.
Police Scenes of Crime officers, and Queensland Fire Department fire investigators are also at the scene, working to determine a cause.
Five Queensland Fire Department crews were sent to extinguish the fire at the single story eight metre by 10 metre house.
The main part of the fire was at the front of the house.
Upon arrival, crews went straight into the house to do a search and were working to extinguish it until after 1am.
The fire was then under control with crews working to dampen hotspots and it was fully extinguished by 1.50am.
Fire crews left the scene just before 6.30am.
The fire investigation unit are expected to return to the scene later in the day.
Investigations are underway to determine the cause of the fire, and police are appealing to anyone who may have information or relevant vision to come forward.
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