Waihī Beach house fire treated as suspicious

Owner Kevan Walsh says the community bears brunt of people committing crime with no idea of the impact and cost of their actions.

Kevan Walsh and his family have a charred shell left of what was once their treasured “home away from home’'.

The house on Edinburgh St, Waihī Beach, was destroyed in a suspicious fire in the early hours of May 17.

A police spokesperson confirmed they were investigating.

“A FENZ fire safety investigator determined the fire was suspicious and police subsequently began an investigation,” the spokesperson said.

Walsh, from Auckland, said hearing the news was a dreadful way to start his day. He was due to go there later that day.

The family was “devastated and overwhelmed’' at the loss of their home which had been in the family for more than 38 years.

‘’Waihī Beach and our bach was the only place my children knew to spend all their summer holidays as they grew up. Countless friends have stayed here. It’s where my daughter chose to be married. We farewelled my wife’s mum here. It’s where we gathered to remember the loss of my nephew.’’

This was also where Walsh and his wife had planned to retire.

They were just grateful no one was staying in the house at the time.

“The impact of a house fire knowing someone may have been in there has been huge,’’ Walsh says.

Burglars stole some “trivial things’' but the fire caused thousands of dollars of damage and destroyed an extensive amount of family treasures, memories and a collection of 1960s surfing memorabilia.

“It just doesn’t make any sense,’’ Walsh said.

Road side view of the destroyed home in Waihī Beach.

On the morning of the fire, a neighbour awoke to the sound of a door slamming and a car leaving at speed. Seeing the glow from the fire, they dialled emergency services.

Four fire trucks from three fire brigades attended and the fire was contained by 6am.

“Our family is so grateful to the fire services - they were never going to be able to save our home, but they did save our neighbours’ homes. Our grief would have trebled if the fire was not contained.’’

He said a neighbour, a former firefighter, did as much as he could to douse the flames with a garden hose.

“We were planning to spend our remaining years there, not planning a rebuild, having to beg for resource consent, worrying about how responsive the insurance company will be and then trying to manage a mortgage in retirement.’’

Walsh also worried about the community.

“I am sure every parent worries about the threat of fire, but it’s usually the fear of accidental cause – not wilful intent.

“Too often now, the community bears the results of people committing crime with absolutely no empathy nor care or appreciation of the impact and cost of their actions.’’

He said family and friends had rallied around, and fire service, investigators and police had shown great compassion and support.

“Police don’t often solve these sorts of crimes alone – they need information – but importantly, we need to feel safe and be safe.’’

Waihī Police Sergeant Simon Everson attended the fire and believed the incident was a break-in.

Suspicious fires are uncommon in the area, he said.

He said they would like to hear from anyone who was in the area at the time.

“We believe the people [who broke in] were there for some time and the final time when they left was about 4.30am, so we’d like to hear from anyone who was around at that time. We’re looking for any suspicious behaviour, any vehicles seen.‘’

People can contact the police non-emergency number 105 if they have any information.

Rebecca Mauger is the editor of Katikati Advertiser. She has been with NZME for more than 20 years as a reporter and entertainment/lifestyle magazine writer.