By 1news.co.nz
At least six people have died in a “significant building fire” in a Wellington hostel overnight.
At least six people died in the fire at Loafers Lodge overnight. (Source: 1News)
Tomorrow, FENZ will be handing over their investigation to police, who will be conducting a “methodical” investigation into the circumstances of the fire.
The coroner will be working to identify the bodies of those who died, reuniting them with their families as soon as possible.
“The people you love will be treated with kindness,” Coroner Anna Turton said.
Police said the fire is “unexplained” at this stage, meaning police will work alongside fire services to determine the cause of the fire.
FENZ is treating it as “suspicious”.
In a statement this morning, police said their “initial assessment is that the number of deceased is fewer than 10”.
Speaking to Parliament today, Health Minister Ayesha Verrall said one person has been taken to the burns unit.
“However, we are not in a position to be any more specific until we can access the building.
“It is currently unsafe and until we can access the building — and reconcile numbers of people who are safe — we are not in a position to determine how many people are deceased or unaccounted for.
“Our focus is on identifying those people as soon as we can.”
Police urge anyone who was staying in the lodge and is safe, or anyone concerned for someone, to call them on 105 or fill in an online form and reference Operation Rose.
The fire at the Loafers Lodge, in Newtown, began around 12.25am. (Source: Other)
Fire services were called to Loafers Lodge on Adelaide Rd, in Newtown, around 12.25am.
The response was raised to a fifth alarm after crews saw a well-involved fire on the top floor.
“So far, 52 people have been accounted for from the building.”
Fire and Emergency deputy national commander Brendan Nally has said there were no sprinklers in the building.
Residents in the area have been advised to stay indoors with their windows and doors closed due to the smoke plume, incident controller Mike Dombrowski said.
According to Wellington City Council, the building was issued a Warrant of Fitness in March, with “no concerns raised” by the building inspector.
‘Very, very sad’
One resident, Chris, described crawling out of his room on the third floor to escape.
“It was black as, thick as smoke – it was hard to breathe,” he said.
“For me it was hard, just that little distance, it was a struggle.”
He said he lost all of his belongings in the fire.
“Everything’s gone, my room’s trashed… I grabbed my vape and my phone instead of my shoes,” he said.
“All I’ve got is what I’ve got on me now, but that’s only materialistic, they’re easy to replace. Replacing people’s lives is a different story.”
Another resident who stayed on the first floor, Simon Hanify, said he went around knocking on doors to wake people up.
He said he yelled: “Get out, there’s a fire, this one’s real!”
Multiple residents have said the building’s fire alarms regularly went off, but one has claimed they didn’t sound this morning. Others have said they did.
“The worry is people who were sleeping up on the third floor,” Hanify said.
Multiple residents have said the building’s fire alarms regularly went off, but one has claimed they didn’t sound this morning.
Another resident, Tamrat Isse Adan, said he didn’t have anywhere to go.
He described the situation as “very, very sad”.
“I didn’t see anything. It was dark,” Adan said.
“I don’t mind for my clothes, I don’t mind, everything, I don’t mind, but when you hear someone is missing, that makes me very sad.”
The survivors are now staying at an emergency centre.
‘A worst nightmare’
Earlier this morning, Fire and Emergency district manager Nick Pyatt confirmed the fire “will be a multi-fatality incident”.
“Our thoughts at this time are with the families of those who have perished, and with our crews who valiantly rescued those and attempted to rescue those but they couldn’t.”
He also acknowledged the communications centre staff “who were on the phone to people who they then lost contact with”.
Pyatt called the incident “a worst nightmare”.
“If you could understand our Newtown crew, they came from 2.5 kilometres up the road. They would have been here at 25 past 12, coming down and they would have seen it, they would have faced it.
“They would have been really mixed with putting water on the fire, rescuing people. It doesn’t get worse than this for our people.”
Fatal Wellington hostel fire ‘a worst nightmare’ – Fire and Emergency NZ
“It doesn’t get worse than this for our people,” District Manager Nick Pyatt said. (Source: 1News)
He called the incident a “once-in-a-decade fire for Wellington”.
Pyatt said a fifth alarm fire happens in the capital every two or three years
“This is very unusual for New Zealand and a tragedy like this will really rock the city and it will take us some time to come back from this.”
While the firefighters at the scene are “mopping” up “tiny pockets of fire”, there are fears the roof of the building may potentially cave in, Pyatt said.
There are also concerns around asbestos in the roof, but it is unconfirmed at this stage.
Six crews are on-site this afternoon, including an Urban Search and Rescue Squad equipped with a drone who is “currently assessing structural integrity before investigations start”, he said.
“At this stage any cause of the fire or any other details around the circumstances of the fire cannot be confirmed.”
At its peak, 29 crews – making up more than 80 firefighters – attended the scene, he said.
Property manager Marie Murphy earlier told 1News around 92 people were living at the 94-room lodge, which provides short- and long-term accommodation.
She said he was unsure if they were all staying in the building when the fire broke out.
“A large number of them work shifts. Hospital, meat works etc,” she said.
5 rescued from roof of Wellington hostel amid blaze
The fire broke out at the Loafers Lodge, in Newtown, early this morning. (Source: Breakfast)
Five people were rescued by firefighters from the roof of the building.
Wellington Free Ambulance said five people had been taken to Wellington Hospital, with one in a serious condition and four others in a moderate condition.
A Te Whatu Ora spokesperson said four people had been taken to the emergency department following the fire. Three were in a stable condition, while a fourth person was transferred to Hutt Hospital in a serious condition.
Fifteen people have been treated at the scene.
Adelaide Rd between John St and the Basin Reserve will be closed for much of the day while firefighters and police work at the scene.
In a statement, a Wellington City Council spokesperson earlier told 1News have been advised to take alternative routes, and delays are expected.
“Buses and other traffic between the central city and southern suburbs is likely to be diverted for several hours at least and delays can be expected. Bus passengers are advised to check the Metlink website for further details.”
Adelaide Rd between John St and the Basin Reserve is expected to remain closed for much of the day.
A formal investigation will be carried out alongside police in due course.
Fatal Wellington hostel fire ‘a shock to the system’ – mayor
Tory Whanau was emotional as she spoke to Breakfast about the lives lost. (Source: Breakfast)
Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau told Breakfast the fatal fire was “a shock to the system, a very emotional few minutes with the crew down here”.
“My heart just goes out to the friends and family of those who have been impacted by this,” she said, becoming emotional.
“I just really want to thank our fire department, the council and, of course, MSD for coming together and working their hardest to deal with this situation as best they could.”
Whanau called it “a strange situation to be in as the mayor”.
“I’m feeling a lot of pain and emotion for those who have been lost and at this moment, we just have to get those who have made it out of the building, getting them [to] feel safe. We have some in hospital at the moment with injuries. We have to deal with that as soon as possible.
“With what we know so far, we just have to come together and give our love to the families impacted by this tragic situation.”
A Mayoral Relief Fund has now been opened to accept donations from the public.
“In crisis like this the generosity and community spirit of Wellingtonians is on full display and this fund allows us to provide support to people who have lost so much in this devastating fire,” Whanau said in a statement this afternoon.
“By donating to the Fund, we can ensure that people receive the immediate help they really need at this difficult time.”
The money raised will go towards providing those affected with essential supplies and counselling, as well as support for immediate families who have lost loved ones, she said.
“My thoughts go out to their families, friends and colleagues, who will be grieving this immense loss.”
Whanau asked people to “dig deep and show their aroha in response to this tragedy”.
“Let’s show our fellow Wellingtonians that we are there for them in this tough time. I encourage anyone in a position to do so – please make a donation, small or large, to the fund.”
Donations to the Wellington Mayoral Relief Fund can be made via the Wellington City Mission website, using the tag ‘Loafers Lodge fire’.
‘We’ll get through it as a country’ – Hipkins
‘A difficult morning’ – Hipkins visits site of fatal Wellington hostel fire
The prime minister thanked first responders for their efforts amid “a really difficult set of circumstances”. (Source: 1News)
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins called the fatal fire “rough news for New Zealanders to wake up to this morning” after visiting the site today.
He began by acknowledging the “incredible work” of the first responders involved.
“It was clearly a really difficult set of circumstances that they confronted when they got here and a lot of work over the last few hours to get people out of the building, to stabilise the building and now a difficult job ahead as they ascertain when they can get back into the building to do the next difficult and tragic part of this process,” he told reporters.
“We’ve not seen an event of this scale for quite some time so they’ll be really feeling this as well.”
Hipkins also expressed “our sympathy for the victims and for the people who care about them, their family, their whānau and their loved ones” in what has been “a difficult morning”.
He called the scene “quite confronting”, and “clearly a traumatic situation” for the first responders.
Hipkins also acknowledged the difficulties being faced by many New Zealanders in recent years following the Covid-19 pandemic, extreme weather events and economic pressures.
“We’ve had a bit of a rough run of it but we’ll get through it as a country by supporting each other.
“This is a close-knit community that we’re standing in, it’s one that I know well and I know that the community will come together to support each other.”
Wellington hostel fire a ‘terrible tragedy’ – Hipkins
The prime minister acknowledged on Breakfast the valiant efforts of the firefighters involved. (Source: Breakfast)
Earlier on Breakfast, Hipkins called the incident a “really tragic situation”.
“It’s a really concerning development and obviously, our thoughts will be with all of the firefighters involved, all of the victims of the terrible tragedy that’s unfolding in Wellington this morning,” he said.
“There will, of course — as there always is — be opportunity to get to the bottom of what’s happened and why it’s happened but for now, I want to particularly acknowledge the firefighters who have been putting themselves in harm’s way over the last however many hours in order to try and get people out of the building and to try and get the fire out.”
Non-urgent hospital patients urged to stay away
Te Whatu Ora Capital, Coast & Hutt Valley is urging people to avoid coming to Wellington Regional Hospital unless they are in need of urgent or emergency care.
“Patients who have non-urgent and safely-deferrable appointments are being rescheduled. People are asked not to call about appointments as they will be contacted if their appointment is affected,” Te Whatu Ora said in a media release.
“Anyone who requires urgent or emergency care will receive it. Anyone unsure if they require urgent care should contact their GP or medical centre, or phone Healthline (0800 611 116) for advice. In an emergency, call 111.”
The situation is likely to evolve throughout the day “due to the ongoing nature” of the incident.
“Our thoughts are with the people and whānau affected by this tragedy.”
1News understands the hospital is seeking public health advice on whether there is a threat of asbestos in the air.
