Hampton Park resident Dennis Luke reflects on the enormity of his loss after fire destroyed the family home on Sunday morning. Picture: Stewart Chambers.By Alison Noonan
A HAMPTON Park father who rescued his family from their burning house on Sunday has shrugged off claims he is a hero.
Dennis Luke caught his wife and two young children in his arms as they jumped off the secondstorey balcony after fire engulfed their Templer Avenue home about 5.30am.
However, it was the family’s wellrehearsed fire evacuation plan that was the difference between life and death, according to Mr Luke.
“I first woke up about 3.30am because I could smell something but I wasn’t sure what it was,” Mr Luke said.
“I checked every room in the house but couldn’t see anything so I went back to sleep.
“The smoke alarms woke us up a few hours later and I went downstairs to see the whole lounge room completely ablaze.
“I broke the security door down and tried to get back upstairs but couldn’t so I ran outside and told my wife and kids to get on to the balcony.
“The rest came down to trust. I told them I was right there underneath them and to jump and I would catch them. And they did.”
Mr Luke said he watched the house he built from scratch 18 years ago go up in flames in just seven minutes.
“The whole thing was just a blur, it all happened so quickly.
“I wasn’t concerned about the house. I just had one thought. You can’t replace your wife and kids.
“The kids were well educated on fire evacuation procedures and the courage they had to jump off the balcony is through that fire training.
“If no one knows what they’re doing you panic. If we didn’t have a plan it would have been a very different situation.”
Mr Luke said he was overwhelmed by the community support he and his family had received in the days since the fire, with donations flooding in from neighbours, local shops, primary school and even complete strangers.
“It has just been amazing,” he said.
“It is nice to know that people are willing to help during times like these.
“I just hope that our loss can help others and spark people into doing something about fire safety in the home.
“Make sure you have smoke alarms, make sure there are batteries in those alarms and create a fire plan.”
Glenda Marsden from the Hampton Park Baptist Church, who is leading the public appeal for donations, said the family was in desperate need of clothing, mobile phones, vouchers, money, furniture and a car after losing all their possessions in the blaze.
“Dennis is an absolute hero for what he did,” she said.
“The family is very, very lucky to have escaped.
“However, they lost absolutely everything so we are calling for community support to help them start from scratch.
“Their family, friends and local shops have been fantastic so far, especially the Hampton Park Optical Shop which donated four sets of prescription glasses.
“Even the local supermarkets said they have experienced a big demand for batteries since the fire.”
Kilberry Valley principal Jan White said the school community was doing everything it could to assist the Luke family, who had given so much to the school over the years.
“Whenever there is a special event at the school you can back it in that the Luke family will be there,” she said.
“They are a family who are always helping others at the school so we will do all we can to help them.
“We have supplied new uniforms for the kids and are tracking down all their past school photos and DVDs of all school productions they have been involved in.”
Police said the fire was caused by an electrical fault.
