By Alesha Capone
Tributes are flowing after the tragic deaths of four young children in a Werribee fire on the weekend.
Siblings Hamid, 10, Esin, six, Nadir, three, and Elin, aged one, died in the blaze at their family home on Mantello Drive, which began about 1am on Sunday.
The children’s parents, and their eight-year-old brother Ibrahim, escaped the fire and were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Arson and Explosives Squad detectives are investigating the cause of the fire.
The CFA said the family’s single-storey brick veneer house was fully alight when firefighters arrived at the scene.
About 30 CFA firefighters, supported by additional Fire Rescue Victoria crews, brought the blaze under control by 2am.
Neighbours Geeta and Robert Deagan said the children’s father, Nagmeldin Osman, came to their door after the fire started.
“Their dad knocked on the door, he said: ‘My kids are dead, my kids are dead’,” Geeta said.
Blood from Mr Osman’s injuries was left on the Deagans’ door, after he tried to re-enter his burning home about four times to rescue his sons and daughters.
Mr Osman and his wife also had no time to put on clothes as they ran from the fire, so Robert and Geeta gave them pants and blankets.
Robert turned his garden hose on the burning house next door, as flames went through the property’s roof.
Geeta said she called triple-0 but that after the initial “fire, police or ambulance?” question, it took about 10 to 15 minutes to reach an emergency services operator.
She said that Mr Osman kept asking: “Where is the fire brigade?”
On Monday, toys, candles, children’s books and flowers were left outside the Osman’s burned house.
A family friend, who left a toy at the scene, said Ibrahim was being cared for by relatives in Noble Park while his parents were in hospital.
“He’s very sad,” she said.
The woman said the family had been planning to travel to Sudan in December, to visit the children’s grandparents.
In a statement, the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority (ESTA) said it would investigate the events on the night of the priority, but early indications were that a triple-000 call about the blaze was answered in 79 seconds.
ESTA’s interim chief executive Stephen Leane said: “Our triple zero operators care deeply about the service they provide and the community they serve, we are always distressed if any callers have to wait for help.”
An online fundraising page has been set up by Truganina resident Fathi Ahmed, to assist the Osmans.
It has received thousands of donations totalling more than $281,000.
Details: www.gofundme.com/f/funeral-for-the-4-kids-who-died-from-house-fire
