A man was rushed to hospital with “significant” burns to his upper body after trying to save his elderly mother from a horrific house fire that claimed her life.
Emergency crews responded to the Kathleen St property in Sarina, south of Mackay in central Queensland, about 4.25pm on Sunday and found the two-storey house completely engulfed in flames.
It is understood the fire was caused by an oil spill in the kitchen, which set the entire second floor alight before quickly engulfing the rest of the house.
Neighbors were alerted by the sound of windows exploding and quickly ran outside.
Several tried to extinguish the flames with garden hoses until firefighters arrived.
“Fortunately, the first floor is concrete, so there was nothing that could ignite down there, but the entire upper floor is drywall, wood, and asbestos that still burns, but once it started, there was no way to stop it.” stop it from that point,” Timothy Parker said. he courier mail.
He added that emergency services arrived at the scene “very quickly.”
The 71-year-old woman’s body was found inside the destroyed home after the fire was extinguished.
Fire crews were called to a house fire in Sarina, near Mackay, on Sunday (file image)
The fire tragically claimed the life of a 71-year-old woman. The house is in the photo
The woman’s son suffered “significant” burns to his hands while trying to fight the fire and save his mother.
“We did everything we could,” Parker said.
The injured man, aged in his 40s, was taken to Mackay Hospital.
Two firefighters were also taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
A fire investigator is expected to respond to the scene on Monday.
“A crime scene has been declared and investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing,” a police statement read.
Anyone with information has been urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
The home last sold for $203,000 in 2009, according to real estate data.