By Sarah McPhee
A man who died in a house fire in Sydney’s south-west had gone upstairs in an attempt to extinguish the blaze, which may have been caused by lithium batteries, firefighters say.
The fire broke out at the property on Highclere Avenue in Punchbowl at about 10pm on Saturday.
Emergency services arrived to find the two-storey residence alight, and the flames through the roof.
“A 54-year-old man was treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics but died at the scene,” police said in a statement on Sunday.
Fire and Rescue NSW Superintendent Andrew Shurety said firefighters found the man unconscious in the bathroom on the second floor of the townhouse and brought him outside to commence CPR, before paramedics took over and declared him deceased.
Shurety said three people had been eating downstairs when the blaze broke out. Two left the residence, but one grabbed an extinguisher and had “run upstairs to attack the fire”.
“He’s the person that was pulled out.”
Firefighters worked through the night, however the cause of the fire remained officially undetermined on Sunday. One line of inquiry is four lithium batteries found in the bedroom.
Shurety said there was evidence the man had been incapacitated by smoke and toxic fumes.
The home also had no working smoke alarms.
Shurety said the batteries can behave “like a firecracker”, producing an intense flame that is hard to extinguish.
“The advice to the community is: if your house is on fire, you need to vacate and let the professionals attend the fire,” he said. “It’s not worth risking your life for property and personal belongings.”
He urged people to take precautions when charging lithium-ion batteries, including not charging them on a flammable surface such as a bed, and charging e-bikes and e-scooters outside and not overnight.
A crime scene was established at the home and investigations continue into the cause of the fire.
Anyone with CCTV or information is urged to contact Bankstown police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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