Two more children have died after a suspicious house fire in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, bringing the death toll to three.
Overnight, a four-year-old girl and seven-year-old girl died at Queensland Children’s Hospital from their injuries.
Neighbours rushed to help people escape the Toowoomba home on Merritt Street in Harristown after it went up in flames about 12.30am on Wednesday.
Six people managed to escape but a body – believed to be a missing nine-year-old boy – was later discovered in the house’s charred remains.
The residents were identified by Daily Mail Australia as 36-year-old Ellouisa Brighton Gibson, her 34-year-old partner Justin Gibson and their children.
An investigation has been launched into the cause of the blaze west of Brisbane, with police treating it as suspicious.
A neighbour said a resident of the home repeatedly yelled a name after escaping before a fourth child was confirmed missing.
The home remained a crime scene on Wednesday as police investigated the fire with homicide detectives called in.
The home of Ellouisa Brighton Gibson, 36, (pictured) and partner Justin Gibson, 34, in Harristown, 130km west of Brisbane , erupted up in flames just after midnight on Wednesday
Three of the couple’s five children (pictured) – aged 4, 7, 11 and 18 -have now been kille dby the blaze
Two more children have died following a suspicious house fire in Toowoomba
Overnight, a four-year-old girl and seven-year-old girl died at Queensland Children’s Hospital
‘Police are treating a house fire … as suspicious,’ Queensland Police said in a statement.
‘At this time, police are not looking for anyone else in connection to this incident.’
The 36-year-old woman and two girls – aged four and seven – were airlifted to Brisbane hospitals in a critical condition.
The children died at the hospital overnight.
The woman remains in a critical condition at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital under police guard.
Two men were taken to a Toowoomba hospital with a 34-year-old in a stable condition with serious injuries while an 18-year-old is believed to have a hand injury.
They were discharged on Thursday morning.
An 11-year-old boy was uninjured, police said.
Mother-of-five Ellouisa Brighton Gibson (pictured) has been put under police guard as she fights for life in hospital in a critical condition
Queensland Police confirmed it is treating the fire as suspicious
‘This is a tragic event and we are deeply saddened by this incident,’ Detective Inspector Renee Garske told reporters.
She confirmed investigations would include whether domestic violence played a role in the fire.
When asked if the seven people involved were related, Insp Garske said: ‘We are working through that information to determine the status of the relationships at that home address.’
Neighbours smashed windows in an attempt to free the children from the home.
Neighbour Will Cuffe ran to help the family as soon as he saw the fire.
‘We were awake and heard some loud shouting, so we went to see what was happening and saw a lot of people out on the street,’ he told The Courier Mail.
‘We heard the smoke alarms, then saw the smoke and flames. After we saw the smoke, it took about three minutes and the house just went up in flames
‘We saw the mother, the father and some of the young kids, The mother was holding the kids and taking them to the ambulance
Homicide detectives were called to assist in Queensland Police’s investigation on Wednesday
A woman who escaped the fire remains in a critical condition under police guard
‘Two of the young kids were walking, but they were really badly burnt.’ he said. ‘The dad had a cut on his arm.’
A witness who phoned Triple-0 said the home was fully engulfed by the time he ended the call to emergency services.
Queensland Fire and Rescue Service station manager Neil Goodman said fire crews located the nine-year-old’s body near the front door.
‘Once (crews) could bring the fire under control sufficiently, just near the front door, they located one (deceased person),’ Mr Goodman told 7News.
The family’s dog survived the fire and was being cared for by a neighbour.
Mr Goodman said firefighters were greeted with a ‘wall of flame and heavy smoke’ when they arrived at the scene as the fire mostly impacted the front of the home.
‘The guys had quite a difficult time making access and getting in to conduct a primary search,’ Mr Goodman said.
After speaking with a family member who was ‘hysterical’, Mr Goodman advised fire and rescue crews on where they might be able to find the missing child.
Neighbours smashed the home’s windows in a desperate attempt to save the children
Police will investigate whether domestic violence was a factor in the fire
‘We’re all fathers, we’ve all got children, so its always hard, it’s a little bit harder when its sort of similar to your own situation,’ Mr Goodman said.
It took about 30 minutes for four fire crews to extinguish the fire.
Anyone with information or relevant vision, including CCTV or dashcam footage, is urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
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