Punchbowl house fire: Sydney man Keiron Summers died trying to put out fire on unit
- A Sydney man died trying to put out a house fire
- Police warned against attempts to put out the fires
A man has died after using a fire extinguisher to put out a massive blaze that engulfed his unit.
Emergency services rushed to Highclere Avenue near Punchbowl, southwest Sydney, to find a unit engulfed in flames around 10pm Saturday.
Keiron Summers, 54, was taken unconscious from the home and treated by paramedics before dying at the scene.
Mr. Summers was one of three people present in the house at the time, with the other two managing to escape the unit while Summers tried to put out the fire.
Keiron Summers, 54, died Saturday after trying to put out a fire at a unit in Punchbowl, Sydney’s southwest.
Andrew Shurety of Fire and Rescue NSW said Mr Summers was found with soot around his mouth and nose, and died after inhaling smoke and possibly toxic gases.
It is clear that Mr. Summers was taking a fire extinguisher upstairs when the fire broke out.
Mr Shurety said this was a ‘futile effort’ given the scale of the blaze in a stern message intended for anyone involved in a massive house fire.
“I don’t think people realize that a fire extinguisher can’t put out a fire of that size,” he said. 7News.
“Our firefighters do not enter this building without breathing apparatus.
“The risk is that if you end up in a smoking environment, you only need a few breaths of this poisonous gas and you could lie unconscious on the floor.”
While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, Mr Shurety said four lithium iron batteries were found upstairs.
“Battery fires can start quickly and burn out with extreme heat, and are difficult to extinguish,” he said.
It is clear that Mr Summers tried to use a fire extinguisher in an attempt to put out the blaze, prompting him to receive a warning from the police about the dangers of approaching large fires.
Local woman Diana Jabbour said people had tried to enter the burning unit but ‘they had no luck’.
“This fire had just caught up… it was so thick and so strong,” she told 7News.
“All you felt was ashes on your hair and everyone was in a panic.”
Ms Jabbour described Mr Summers as a ‘nice man’.
“He took everyone in … he was very sweet,” she said.
A crime scene has been cordoned off and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.