By ANEEKA SIMONIS
Woodfire heating unit ignites house fire leaving owners…
A WOODFIRE heating unit is to blame for a blaze at a Menzies Creek home on Thursday afternoon.
Owners of the Cardinia Court home, Craig and Robyn Dean arrived late to the scene, held up by traffic jams caused by a truck that rolled on Burwood Highway in Ferntree Gully earlier that day.
“We are a little bit shocked, disappointed, anxious … it’s not an old house,” Mr Dean said.
“It’s only 10 years old.”
CFA crews from Menzies Creek, Selby, Kallista and Clematis attended the blaze which struck around 4.20pm in the afternoon, along with three other support vehicles including a breathing apparatus van from Bayswater.
Kallista-The Patch’s CFA captain Peter Toender said they received the call around 4.45pm to attend the scene.
“It took about half an hour to knock the fire down and another hour-and-a-half to really get rid of all the flames,” Mr Toender said.
Captain Toender said three-quarters of the internal roof structure was damaged in the blaze while the living room which contained the heating unit had completely burnt down.
“The house is not a write off, it just needs a new roof and ceiling,” he said.
Mr Dean said despite the damage, he was relieved that the fire was contained and did not spread through the rest of their home.
“I am relieved that it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. When you hear of houses being burnt, they are burnt to the ground.
“No one is hurt, that’s the main thing,” he said.
