By ALESHA CAPONE
A MAN has been charged with attempted murder after a pregnant woman and her two young daughters almost died in a suspicious Kings Park house fire last Tuesday.
The Kings Park male, 42, has faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court charged with three counts of attempted murder and two counts of conduct endangering life.
Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) officers arrived at Caxton Court to discover the pregnant mother and two girls trapped inside their burning home behind barred windows.
The woman’s 16-year-old son was using rocks to try and break the window in an effort to free his mother and sisters.
Nearby resident, John North, saw the fire and grabbed a pickaxe in an attempt to remove the window’s bars.
MFB Commander Philip Klein said the woman’s son and Mr North also passed wet towels to the trapped trio.
Mr Klein said fire trucks from St Albans and Deer Park attended the inferno, alongside 18 firefighters.
“What I was confronted with was a mum, an adult woman, laid out in front of the house getting oxygen treatment, and two young children, and an ambulance was also there,” Mr Klein said.
“It was a very, very emotional scene.”
Mr Klein said MFB officers decided to enter the house, breaking through a backdoor and heading down a hallway to rescue the mother and the two girls, aged around three and four.
“What they were confronted with was a mother and two children behind a barred window and screaming for oxygen,” he said.
“Was it death they were facing? I’d say so, or even the likelihood of worse injuries because it was a matter of minutes. So they were very fortunate.”
Two of the pregnant woman’s daughters visited the charred home last Wednesday to retrieve possessions and thank Mr North for helping save their mother.
The girls’ two brothers including the 16-year-old boy were treated for minor burns and their mother was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital for observation.
After the fire, police removed around 40 cannabis plants from the property.
Mr Klein said while many people installed security measures at their homes, residents also needed to plan their escape from emergency situations.
“If the door is deadlocked or the window is barred, people will not be able to get out,” he said.
