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Max Chirila is being remembered as very bright young student.
He was due to start Term Two at Ascot State School in Brisbane today. Instead, classmates have left flowers and a school hat outside the Clayfield house where he lost his life.
Max’s mother, Karen, thanked the community for all their support.
He was two weeks shy of his seventh birthday.
Emergency services were called to the property around 4am yesterday morning.
There, fire crews were met with an intense wall of flame that made entry impossible.
“The crews were met by a lot of smoke and a lot of heat, it was very difficult to make entry through the front door but they eventually made entry through there,” Superintendent Paul Durston from Queensland Fire and Emergency Services said.
Max’s parents and young brother Lincoln managed to escape the flames but the fire, which is believed to have started at the rear of the property near Max’s bedroom, prevented rescue teams from reaching him.
The boy’s family told 9News they felt like their entire world had collapsed within a few seconds.
The heat was so intense windows shattered, causing explosions to ring out across the street.
Local Jenn Davidson said the scenes witnessed yesterday will live with her forever.
“The realisation she couldn’t go back into the home to save him is something I will never ever forget,” Jenn Davidson told 9News.
“Devastating – an awful thing to witness.
“We as a community are just in shock. It’s a heart breaking experience for all involved.”
Fire investigators will return to the property today to try and determine what caused the blaze.
Source: 9News
