Overview

• Firefighters were called to Whitmore Place in Hillside just before 9.30pm and arrived to find the single-storey home fully alight.
• Crews brought the blaze under control in about 36 minutes, containing it to the rear living area as severe heat and smoke damaged the rest of the property.
• A seven-year-old boy and a man in their thirties were taken to hospital in critical condition, while a nine-year-old boy and a woman in their thirties sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
• A toddler escaped without injury and paramedics treated multiple occupants at the scene before transport.
• Police are investigating the cause, have ruled out suspicious circumstances for now, and urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers as authorities issued a smoke advisory for nearby residents.