Police have stated that they are keeping an ‘open mind’ regarding the potential cause of a house fire on Russel Island that killed a father and his five sons. Image source: Pxfuel
Police remain on the scene of a deadly house fire that killed a father and five sons on Russel Island yesterday, with the investigation into the cause of the fire expected to take days to complete.
This morning, Detective Superintendent Andrew Massingham told the media that the police had declared a crime scene on Todman Street, but they were keeping an open mind about the fire and whether or not it was suspicious.
“The establishment of the investigation centre is because there are some elements of this incident yesterday that do require closer scrutiny. No determination has been made at this stage as to whether this fire is suspicious or not,” said Detective Superintendent Massingham.
“It’s important that I tell you that we’re keeping an open mind with respect to this matter. As I say, no determination has been made. But there are some aspects of it that require further investigation.
“A crime scene has been declared at Todman Street and fire investigators and scene of crime staff are there. Our disaster victim identification squad has been called in to assist in that process”
Todman Street, where three homes were engulfed in fire after 6:20am on Sunday, has been cordoned off.
34-year-old father, Wayne Godinet, died in the fire attempting to save his five sons—his 3-year-old biological son, 4-year-old twin boys, and his stepsons Harry (10) and Zack (11).
Godinat reportedly had escaped the house when the fire broke out, but rushed back inside to save his sons and a 21-year-old relative who were all sleeping upstairs.
He alerted the relative, an act that is believed to have saved her life.
Mother of the boys, Samantha Stephenson (28), was in the house when it caught fire, but managed to escape with minor physical injuries.
Firefighters found her outside of the property, in a distraught state. She was taken to hospital late yesterday, and was later discharged.
Yesterday, police found the bodies of who they believed were the sons and their father in the rubble of what was once their home.
“It is our priority this morning, and our staff are very mindful that we need to take our investigation meticulously, but we need to get [the bodies out] as soon as we can.”
Detective Superintendent Massingham said that as part of their investigation, Ms Stephenson and another woman who escaped the fire would be interviewed again by police today.
A friend of the family, speaking to 7NEWS, called Godinet a doting father and a hero.
“He would have done everything in his power to get those kids out.
“He was a really doting father. He was always saying he couldn’t wait to get home and play with the kids.”
