Herald delivery saves couples from fire

By RENEE KIRIONA AND JULIET ROWAN





Three couples whose house caught fire while they were asleep say they would be dead if it was not for a newspaper delivery woman.

On Monday morning the power lines connected to the Grey Lynn bungalow burst into flames, igniting the front of the house.

Inside were three couples - one expecting a baby - planning to sleep for at least another two hours.

But at 5am one of the couples was woken up by the sound of a frantic banging on the door.

Brendon Dunphy thought he was dreaming when he heard the ruckus.

"When I realised it was real I thought it was a domestic violence situation. Then I looked outside and saw the power lines and front of the house in flames," he said.

Because Mr Dunphy had to wake the other couples he did not have time to get the Herald delivery woman's name.

"She was gone by the time we all got out of the house, but we just want her to know that we're extremely thankful.

"I'm also counting myself lucky for being a subscriber because if I wasn't she most probably would have never seen the flames."

The hero was 35-year-old Janet Teepa, of Grey Lynn.

She spotted the power lines on fire while driving as her partner, Moni Collins, put the papers into letter boxes.

She leaped from the car, ran to the house and banged on the door.

It took three or four minutes for anyone to answer, but Ms Teepa kept up the din, worried that it might be an elderly couple inside.

"I was just so happy when they woke up."

She had no idea three couples were in the house because she and Mr Collins had to leave to continue their paper run.

But she was relieved to hear they were safe and would like to "go back and give them a hug to see they are all right".

Mr Dunphy believed the household would have eventually woken up but not until the flames were well underway, making it harder for them to get out.

Shane Olsen, of the Ponsonby Fire Station, said the household was "extremely fortunate because it is very common for people not to wake up in these situations and by the time they do, the smoke is too much and they pass out".

The Fire Service was able to get there in time to save the house, he said.

The blaze was attributed to old wiring. The only other damage was a few broken windows.