Help pours in for Canterbury firefighter whose house burns down

The fire occurred last evening at Leeston in Canterbury. Photo / Warren Buckland

The family of a Canterbury firefighter were playing outside on Boxing Day when they heard a beeping noise and saw smoke coming from their home.

A short time later, their home was totally destroyed by fire, said Lloyd Clausen, the chief fire officer with the Leeston Volunteer Fire Brigade.

"They are not coping very well at the moment. They are still struggling," he told the Herald today.

Clausen said the family owned a rural block of several acres. The parents and their four children were away from the home playing yesterday when they heard a beeping sound and saw smoke.

They rushed home and managed to get to the telephone and dial 111.

The house on Swamp Rd, north of Leeston, was engulfed in flames when fire crews from Rolleston and Burnham arrived shortly after 5.30pm. Extra resources were called from Lincoln, including water tankers to tackle the fire at the rural property.

It took firefighters one hour to contain the fire by which time the house was totally destroyed. A fire investigator will look at the possible cause of the fire today, which is not being treated as suspicious.

One person was treated by ambulance from smoke inhalation, Fire and Emergency shift manager Lyn Crossan said.

*** UPDATE *** The support shown so far is just wonderful. Thank you to you all <3 Due to the volume of kindness we...

Posted by Leeston Volunteer Fire Brigade on Wednesday, 25 December 2019

A post on the Leeson Volunteer Fire Brigade Facebook page said the fire had hit "one of our own".

The post said the house belonged to a family of two adults and four children aged 6, 5, 4 and 2.

"The most important part is they are safe, but all they have left are the clothes they stand in."

Scores of people responded to the post with offers of household goods, including a wooden table and chairs, a leather rocking chair, several beds, clothing, toys and even make-up and skincare products.

The local fire brigade plans to set up a Givealittle page. Clausen said another member of the fire brigade was putting them up in temporary accommodation.

Crossan said the public should never underestimate how quickly a fire can spread.