Match game starts fire

BY JOSELYN KHOR

A match lit by a four-year-old boy caused the fire that devastated a family's home in New Lynn on Wednesday.

Glen Eden station officer Terry Batt says the child, a resident at the Rimu St address, was playing with matches when the blaze broke out.

"The fire got away very quick," he says.

Six people were in the building when the flames started to spread from an upstairs room.

Peta Fiaola, mother of the four-year-old, suffered burns to her forehead while inside making sure everyone had got out safely.

No one else was injured.

Mr Batt says the fire was about as bad as it gets, with the entire top floor ablaze by the time help arrived.

"It's what we call a totally involved fire," he says.

Neighbour Darrell Nicolson was passing by and saw smoke billowing and windows popping out of their frames.

"It was incredible," he says.

Ms Fiaola's sister Sarah Fiaola of Mt Roskill heard the commotion over the phone. She says her daughter was speaking to a cousin at the address when the fire broke out around 5.20pm.

The cousin started screaming and Sarah rushed to the house.

Her sister had already been taken away in an ambulance when she got there.

Mr Batt says the station was alerted at 5.30pm.

He says the fire took about 35 minutes to put out.

Staff were still on site at 10pm.

Peta Fiaola lived at the house with her five children.

All are are now staying with relatives in Mt Roskill.

- © Fairfax NZ News