A mother who died in a house fire from which her two boys narrowly escaped has been identified.
Elizabeth Quijano was sleeping in her home in Roleystone, south-east Perth, on Tuesday morning when it caught fire just before 2am.
It is believed that she fainted after waking to find her house on fire and could not be saved.
Elizabeth Quijano was sleeping in her home in Roleystone, south-east Perth, on Tuesday morning when it caught fire just before 2am.
Ms Quijano’s two sons, aged seven and nine, woke their neighbors screaming for help.
“The two children were on the inside banging on the screen door,” hero neighbor Dirk Mathiessn said. 9News.
“It was clearly at an impasse, they couldn’t get through. There’s a window next to it and I just smashed it and took the kids with me.’
Fellow neighbors Misha and Neville Dunn helped get the children to safety.
“I’ll never get that sound out of my head,” Ms. Dunn said The Western Australia. “I’ll hear the screaming for a while, it was horrible.”
Firefighters later found Ms. Quijano’s body in the house.
The boys’ ‘distraught’ father was not at home at the time of the fire.
The fire threatened to spread to nearby properties as it raged through the family home
Police remain at the scene of a horror house fire in Perth where a woman tragically died
Another neighbour, Colin Peterson, choked back tears as he paid tribute to the ‘kind’ mother who died in the fire.
“I used to talk to the woman, she is always friendly and put up Christmas decorations,” he said.
Arson detectives remained on scene Tuesday.
The police consider the fire as non-suspicious.
The cause of the fire has not been determined.
“Arson squad and forensics staff are currently in attendance and we are currently investigating how the fire started and determining the cause, which is ongoing,” WA Senior Sergeant Chris De Bruin said.
‘But at this stage the fire does not appear suspicious.
“At this time the fire does not appear to have been deliberately set.”
‘We are currently talking to the father. Clearly he is distraught, as would be expected.”
Two children were rescued from the burning house. The photo shows emergency response to the tragic scene
Police also praised the efforts of neighbors.
“Two children were rescued while the house was on fire, so their actions were commendable,” Senior Sergeant De Bruin said.
“Without their actions, this situation could be much worse.”
WA Prime Minister Roger Cook described the incident as ‘desperately sad’.
“We are obviously deeply relieved that the children could be rescued from this situation,” he said.
“But for someone to lose their life, to lose their life under such circumstances, is incredibly saddening and our thoughts go out to everyone involved.”