Devastated local firefighters say they may have been able to save a three-year-old boy who died in a Melbourne house fire if authorities had not ignored their pleas for funding.
Jordan Dashwood was killed when his family home in Werribee went up in flames just after midnight on Monday, and his father Jeremy suffered serious injuries while trying to save him.
A Fire Rescue Victoria crew took 11 minutes to arrive at the home after the call was logged, after travelling from Point Cook because the closer Tarneit brigade could not attend because its only pumper was in Lara and its backup was at the scene of a minor car accident, the Herald Sun reported.
Paramedics arrived first, followed by CFA volunteers, and shattered firefighters blamed their slow response on FRV and the Labor state government – which spends tens of millions on multiculturalism and LGBT-related initiatives – turning a blind eye to requests for extra funding stretching back eight years.
“A crew from Tarneit could have been on scene in five to six minutes, and given that boy a much better chance of being saved,” one local firefighter said.
“This is an absolute failure by Fire Rescue Victoria and the government due to a lack of infrastructure and resource spending in the area over many years. It’s disgusting.”
Neighbours said they heard two loud bangs and then saw the house implode in “green, blue colour” flames, and CCTV shows the home being engulfed and one man try to fun inside before being pushed back by the fire.
Jordan’s mother Janelle was able to escape, as was his 11-year-old brother who dived out of a window, but the family’s two bulldogs died inside.
A number of GoFundMe fundraising efforts have been started to help the family, with Janelle’s friend Jardine Jackson writing in one that “Jordan was the absolute centre of their world”.
“He was such a bright, happy little boy whose smile genuinely lit up every single room he walked into. He had so much innocent joy in him, and he absolutely adored his dogs, who stayed by his side and perished with him.
