Mōkau family escapes as shed fire spreads to house
A blaze razed a double garage and spread into Ian and Margaret Whittaker's Mōkau home in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Belinda Whittaker thought someone was trying to steal a water pump from the shed when she was woken by loud noises early on Wednesday morning.
It was just before 4am and the Mōkau resident grabbed a torch to go and check what was going on, only to discover the two car garage was engulfed in flames.
"I could hear paint cans exploding inside the car shed," she said.
Margaret Whittaker surveys the damage done after fire broke in the garage at the rear of her Mōkau property early on Wednesday morning.
Belinda raced back inside the North Taranaki house to alert her parents, whose bedroom was only metres from the burning garage. Then she tried to call 111 but the flames had knocked out the telephone line.
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Knowing there was no time to lose Belinda immediately headed for a neighbour's bach to use the phone while her mum and dad, Margaret and Ian, got themselves out of the house.
A fire that started in a shed spread to Ian and Margaret Whittaker's house significantly damaging two rooms including their bedroom in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
"As I was running up there I realised I couldn't get back again."
She was able to call emergency services and firefighters from Mōkau, Urenui and Pio Pio attended the scene.
Her parents, who run Mōkau River Tours, were able to escape the house as the flames began licking at the roof and walls just outside their bedroom.
"Both of the windows blew out," Margaret said.
"Ian tried to get the hose but he couldn't because it was too hot so we just sat and watched."
Mōkau fire chief Andrew Warren said the building was well alight when firefighters arrived.
"The shed - sleepout was fully engulfed and it had taken hold on one end of the house," Warren said.
Firefighters used high pressure hoses to extinguish the blaze and remained at the scene for about three hours.
Warren said the fire was not being treated as suspicious.
The blaze razed the garage, destroyed two vehicles and caused considerable damage to a bedroom and office at one end of the house while the rest of the building suffered significant smoke and water damage.
Belinda said she had lost all of her clothes which were stored in the shed in the fire as well as her embroidery work, some of which took her 18 months to create.
She fear her chooks had been killed in the blaze but all had turned up safe and sound once the commotion had died down.
Margaret said Ian had been taken to Taranaki Base Hospital as a precaution to be checked out.
She showed she still had a sense of humour while surveying the smouldering debris.
"At least we don't have to worry about the car getting a warrant anymore and I don't have to clean the shed up."
- Stuff
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