House fire forces authorities to close street
UPDATE, 4pm:
THE fire which claimed a house on May St was extinguished this afternoon, but the street will remain in a lockdown today until forensic investigators arrive to determine the cause of the fire.
While the fire is not considered to be suspicious, the easternmost end of May St will be closed to all members of the public, with the exception of residents, said Snr Sgt Duane Frank of Roma Police.
“Police are still on the scene, as the road remains closed in order to contain the property until QFES investigators arrive from Toowoomba.
“Only residents are allowed to enter the street.”
Snr Sgt Frank said the firefighters who battled the blaze worked extremely hard to get it under control.
“The fire crews who promptly responded are to be commended, because their actions allowed all of the surrounding houses to stay safe.
“Everyone who was evacuated this morning has been able to return to their homes,” he said.
12:44pm:
A BLAZE at a home on May St is currently being brought under control by fire crews, after they were alerted to the fire at around 11am.
Residents in the street and surrounding homes have been evacuated along with their pets, and Senior Sgt Duane Frank of the Roma Police confirmed
“Shortly after 11am, the concern was raised by a passing motorist that there was a house on fire.
“Emergency services responded, QPS attended and fire services are here controlling the fire.
“At this stage it is contained to the house; it is a very old house structure.
“The occupants who live there at the moment have been contacted, and they are returning.
“There’s been local evacuations for people living nearby on the street and the surrounds of the house, including the house behind.
“As many cars as possible have been moved, as well as all pets, so there is no concern or danger to any person, and it is just now about the fire service combating the fire and controlling it until it is extinguished.
“The biggest concern is the wind gusts at the moment, which are causing some concerns for the fire officers.
“At this stage we will keep monitoring it, and we ask anyone that does not need to be in this area to stay away,” he said.
Residents in neighbouring streets heard the beginnings of the blaze this morning and quickly alerted authorities, said nearby resident Teagan Hoskin.
“We heard a pop and looked around to see what it was and then we saw a big puff of smoke come up the back [of the house] near my chook pen.
“When I was coming over, the police were already here and it definitely did not look right, so I was checking to see if people were here, so that I could ring the fire brigade and make sure that everyone was alright,” Ms Hoskin said.
Article by Jorja McDonnell – Source Link