A beloved father of two and business owner who died after a ferocious fire ripped through his warehouse has been remembered as the “most honest, genuine and vivacious human being”.
Marine engineer and businessman Rob Lo Presti was working at the marine engineering facility at O’Connor, southwest of Perth, on Saturday when the facility caught fire after an explosion.
He was trapped inside and could not be revived.
Mr. Lo Presti is survived by his wife Rebecca and two young children.
Floral tributes were left for the avid fisherman along with his coffee cup outside the gutter-lined warehouse on Sunday.
“His love of life was evident to all who knew him and his infectious smile was unmatched by any other,” his grieving family said in a statement.
‘He left behind two wonderful children who will live on in the memory of their beloved father.’
Perth father-of-two and businessman Rob Lo Presti (pictured) died in a ferocious factory fire on Saturday.
Two other people were injured in the fire, which Western Australian police are treating as a tragic accident.
The two-story warehouse housed a number of gasoline engines, which fueled the fire that quickly engulfed the building.
State Premier Roger Cook said the fire appeared to be “a tragic and horrific event”.
“I don’t have any further details, but obviously that must have been very distressing for the first responders,” Cook said Sunday.
‘We appreciate their work and of course we have also had loss of life.
He said emergency services had yet to determine the “really sad” circumstances surrounding the fire.
Rob Lo Presti is survived by his wife Rebecca and two children.
The owner of the marine engineering business (pictured) was also an avid fisherman.
More than a dozen firefighters were called to the scene to put out the raging blaze.
Witness Candice Waugh told reporters she heard a loud bang before seeing smoke rising into the sky.
“We heard a very, very loud bang and felt a shock wave, a small tremor in the ground,” he said.
“It sounded like a gas explosion, we could see black smoke coming out of the door.”
Shaun Gilbert, acting area manager for the Washington Department of Fire and Emergency Services, said firefighters had difficulty gaining access to the factory.
“(The fire) was very, very hot, which prevented access to the building,” he told Nine News.
‘There was also no entrance through the back of the premises, so it was incredibly difficult to try to access the fire.’
More than a dozen firefighters were called to the scene (pictured) to put out the blaze believed to have been started by a gas leak.
Mr Gilbert said it appeared “some sort of fuel leak” had triggered a steam flare and explosion that caused the ship and factory to catch fire.
Arson investigators returned to the scene on Sunday to continue investigations into what sparked the fire.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
