Ibrahim Hatem has described the harrowing effort to put out flames of what was initially a small fire at his family business in East Auckland - before realising it was too late.
The 60-year-old, one of the owners of the popular Pakūranga spot, The Pita House, has told of his “broken heart” at seeing the family business go up in smoke right before his eyes during Friday’s firefighter strike.
It is a business he, his brother and brother-in-law started more than 20 years ago.
“Very sad - a broken heart,” Hatem, whose second language is English, told the Herald.
“Nearly 23 years in the shop. We built it when the children were still babies. They’ve grown up with it - it’s like a baby too.”
Emergency services were called to the fire shortly after 12pm on Friday - minutes after professional firefighters went on strike for an hour.
Fire and Emergency NZ later said it took 30 minutes for the nearest volunteer crews to arrive at the scene. Had the nearest career station - in Mt Wellington - been operating, crews would have been four minutes away, the emergency service has told the Herald.
Hatem said the fire started in the rangehood of the oven they used at the store. As well as supplying Middle Eastern groceries and products, they also had freshly made pita breads and other Lebanese delicacies on offer.
“I see everything in front of my eyes,” Hatem said.
“[The fire] started very small - minor. I tried to put it out. I carry on... but I can’t control it.
“I called straight away to the fire people.”
Ibrahim Hatem’s son, Ahmed Reynolds-Hatem, had been out picking up supplies for the store when he got a call from his worried mother asking if he was okay, as she had received word of the fire.
Reynolds-Hatem said his father had relayed that he had unloaded two fire extinguishers on the flames before realising it could not be doused and they needed to get everyone out of the building.
A mosque a few doors down means midday on Fridays is their busiest time of the week, as people come to the shop before and after Friday prayers.
There were up to 14 staff members and dozens of customers inside the building when the fire started, he said.
“[Dad] said he started shouting: ‘Everyone, please leave! Sorry, customers - drop what you got. You’ve got to get out’!”
Reynolds-Hatem, who grew up with his cousins helping at the store, arrived back at the shop that afternoon to see it being destroyed by fire.
There were emotional scenes as family members cried and comforted each other.
Feeling overwhelmed at seeing his life’s work being destroyed, Hatem suffered a medical episode and was rushed to Middlemore Hospital in a serious condition.
Reynolds-Hatem said his father and uncles started the business after they arrived from Syria more than two decades ago. They wanted to start a new life for their young families.
“They’re a bunch of workaholics. They all wake up at 4 o’clock in the morning... 12 hours a day for 20 years, seven days a week,” Reynolds-Hatem said.
“They came to this country with nothing.”
He said the emotion of everything involved had been hard on his father that day.
The family would later learn of the professional firefighters’ strike, after being told that the fire crews initially battling the blaze in front of them were volunteers from different parts of Auckland - volunteers they were very grateful for, they said.
Ibrahim Hatem said he was happy to support better pay for firefighters - as well as other emergency services personnel.
However, asked about the response to their building fire, Hatem simply said: “Not good”.
“We support you. Have the strike. We support the nurses, we support the doctors, we support everybody.
“But, see? Have the emergency, don’t put people’s life at risk,” Hatem said.
“I come from the Middle East - [from] a war-[torn] country. But [anyone] in danger, we come first to help.”
Almost a week later, Reynolds-Hatem said he had come to realise how lucky his father and all those who had been inside were.
The outcome could have been much worse, Reynolds-Hatem said.
“I’ve been thinking about it the last two days. Pardon my language, but f***. What if the fire was blocking the exit and there was no one there to come stop it?
“Luckily the fire was on that side, that allowed room for escape. But what if it wasn’t?”
Fire and Emergency national commander Megan Stiffler told the Herald they had received 23 calls to 111 relating to the blaze.
An investigation into the cause of the fire had been completed. It had been ruled accidental, with the most probable cause being a fire in the kitchen’s extraction system, she said.
On the response time, she confirmed it took half an hour for the nearest volunteer fire crews to arrive.
“The nearest paid firefighter station is Mt Wellington, which is located four minutes away from the incident ground.
“Our thoughts are with the family and business impacted by this incident.”
Stiffler said Fire and Emergency had previously sought to establish a process with the NZPFU to which they could call on paid firefighters for more serious incidents such as this one.
She said they had reached out again seeking a process to ensure public safety.
“We continue to ask the NZPFU to call off strikes planned for 16 and 23 January while we are in the process of facilitation with the Employment Relations Authority.”
The union said contingency plans should have been put in place by Fire and Emergency authorities.
NZPFU vice-president Martin Campbell earlier told the Herald firefighters were deployed to the blaze as soon as the industrial action ended at 1pm.
“As soon as the strike finished, they jumped in their trucks and raced straight over to the fire,” he said.
“It’s important that the organisation [Fire and Emergency] takes on board their past failures: not properly resourcing the organisation, not supplying enough firefighters, not supplying working fire trucks or equipment that works properly.”
Ministers Simeon Brown and Brooke van Velden have both come out in support of Fire and Emergency, with van Velden posting online: “Enough is enough. The NZPFU needs to stop gambling with people’s lives and safety and stop these strikes.”
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