Fatal house fire survivor’s chilling words as family home burned

A man who allegedly lit a house fire that killed three children allegedly spoke four chilling words as he tried to prevent rescuers from entering the home.

Police claim the man, 28, allegedly tried to stop neighbours and officers from entering the burning home at Lalor Park in western Sydney early on Sunday morning, while his partner and seven children, aged between 10 months and 11 years old, were inside the property.

In an update on Monday afternoon, the man is reportedly so wounded from the alleged blaze, it is uncertain if he will survive.

Witnesses report he allegedly yelled “let me die here” as he tried to prevent the rescue efforts.

According to The Daily Mail, the eldest boy told his rescuers: “(He) tried to kill me.”

“At this stage it does appear the 28-year-old is responsible for multiple deaths of young lives that have been tragically taken away,” Homicide Squad Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said on Sunday.

“We’re alleging the 28-year-old man took actions to prevent the young people inside being rescued.”

Two boys aged two and four were pulled from the fire and given CPR, but died at the scene.

Fire and Rescue NSW found the body of a 10-month-old girl inside the house after they extinguished the fire.

Four other children managed to escape and were taken to hospital.

The man’s partner is also in hospital being treated for smoke inhalation.

The man was arrested and taken to hospital under police guard, where he is now in an induced coma with severe burns to his skin and throat.

No charges have been laid.

The incident is being investigated as a domestic violence, multiple homicide incident.

There was no apprehended violence order in place against the man, police say, with the couple involved had been in a relationship for nearly a decade.

The pair are reportedly listed as being “engaged” on Facebook.

Detective Superintendent Doherty said the suspect was “not adversely known” to police, nor is he before the court for any other matters.

“These types of matters are just devastating. These are tragic circumstances,” he said.

“These are really extraordinary circumstances. We hope the community comes together, galvanises and helps the family.

“There’s more good than bad in the world. Tragedy usually brings out the best in people.”

Hero neighbours

NSW Police Acting Superintendent Jason Pietruszka said neighbours and police were “quite heroic” in trying to get into the house.

The actions of a neighbour saved more lives from being lost, the Superintendent said.

One neighbour, Jarred Hawkins, has been praised for running into the house and confronting the man, with locals claiming he was “the reason” four children survived, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Another neighbour, Damien Dubois, told the publication he woke up to the sound of “yelling or screaming” and was later approached by the eldest child who was suffering from burns on both his arms.

NSW Premier Chris Minns described the incident as “horrifying and senseless”.

“These children deserved love and protection and a caring home,” he said.

“Our love and thoughts are with the surviving family members. NSW will support them for as long as necessary, as they seek to recover from this unfathomable event.

“Our thoughts are also with the emergency service workers who fought to save lives last night and who will also be recovering in their own way after a horrible night.”

‘Absolute chaos’

Emergency services were called to the home in Freeman Street, Lalor Park about 1am on Sunday.

“Going to a house fire, you’re always expecting the worst, hoping it won’t be but this was confronting, absolute chaos,” NSW Fire and Rescue Superintendent Adam Dewberry said.

“They got in, commenced their fire fighting operations, got in and did that search, got those two children out, handed them over to paramedics who then continued with that emergency medical treatment.”

He said crews faced “superheated” conditions, with the likely temperature in the home between 600 and 700 degrees, while looking for the children.

“They can’t see … they’re getting through under extreme, superheated conditions, while looking for those children,” Superintendent Dewberry said.

“There was heavy fire activity, the flames venting out through both front windows, getting up over the roof line,” he said.

“They got in under those fire conditions, started to knock down the fire and conducted a search under very extreme conditions.”

Detective Doherty said the investigation would take some time.

“At the moment, it’s early in the investigation. Homicide squad detectives … will have a lot to do today and ongoing weeks in relation to putting together what happened,” he said.