Three children and man die in 'horrific incident' at Camp Hill
Three children under the age of 10 have been killed in a car fire in Brisbane's south-east, police have confirmed.
A man known to the children is also dead. A woman, known to the man and children, has been taken to Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital with severe burns.
Paramedics took another man, believed to be a Good Samaritan, to the same hospital suffering from burns to his face, senior paramedic Adrian Tong said.
"As far as I'm aware, somebody did step in to try and help that was close by," Mr Tong said.
“I think he tried his best to get to the car. He wasn't related to the scene as far as I know."
Detective Inspector Mark Thompson would not confirm if the people in the car were related, but did confirm they were local to the Camp Hill area in Brisbane's south-east.
"I've seen some horrific scenes, this is up there with ... them,'' he said, near the scene at Raven Street.
It's a terrible scene, and like I said, we've got three deceased children, a deceased adult male and a critically injured female. A terrible thing to be presented with, but we'll work through it.
Detective Inspector Mark Thompson
Mr Tong described the scene as "confronting", saying all the attending crews have now been stood down from duty.
"They'll be debriefed," he said.
Three firefighting crews and one fire investigation unit were called just before 8.30am, a Queensland Fire and Emergency Services spokeswoman said.
The car was engulfed in flames but was under control within 15 minutes.
Police at the scene of the horrific incident in Raven Street, Camp Hill.Credit:Dan Peled/AAP
Neighbour Murray Campbell heard multiple explosions from his backyard and came running out the front to see the car "engulfed in flames".
He called triple zero when he heard explosions, saying "the rest is just horrible".
"[There were] multiple explosions ... it was very loud, like a gas cylinder exploding, it was every bit as bad as that."
Murray Campbell.Credit:Toby Crockford
Mr Campbell did not see anyone leaving the scene but said the car was stationary when on fire before it rolled across the street ablaze.
He said he had not seen the people or car before, but police have confirmed the victims lived in the general area.
Inspector Thompson said police had extensively door knocked the entire area this morning.
“I anticipate that there will be another crime scene or two to be declared, but at this stage, we haven't declared another crime scene,” he said.
“How the fire actually occurred has not been ascertained at the moment so for us to call it a murder-suicide or a tragic accident, is inappropriate for us to try and do that.
"It is very early in the investigation, but I can say that the vehicle was fully emerged in fire upon police services arriving."
Police are investigating the death of three people in Camp Hill.Credit:Toby Crockford
Police Minister Mark Ryan said it was a "very sad day".
"As members of parliament we get to see the best of people and the worst of people, we can see the frailty of the human condition, we can see how precious life is,'' he said.
“Today is a very sad day, I have just been informed by the police commissioner that three people have died, including children, in a horrific incident at Camp Hill this morning.
“All emergency services are on scene. The situation is at a very early stage and I am informed police are investigating all of the circumstances surrounding this tragic set of events."
The fire investigation unit and police remained at Camp Hill, a residential suburb about six kilometres south-east of the Brisbane CBD.
Detective Inspector Mark Thompson urged the public to come forward if they had information.
"It's very important for us to get a complete picture of what occurred here today,'' he said.
Detective Inspector Mark Thompson appeals for information.Credit:AAP
Anyone who lives in the vicinity of Raven and Pryde streets at Camp Hill, if they can contact the Queensland police if they have any information if they heard anything, saw anything or someone has told them something in relation to this fire on Raven Street today," he said.
Anyone with information should call Policelink on 131 144, Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or their local police station
If you or someone you know needs help, phone Lifeline on 131 114.
With Jocelyn Garcia