Friday started just like any other day for Fiona Smith.
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She got up, got her 11 year-old son Charlie ready and took him to school.
But on returning home, things took a turn for the worst.
Pulling up in the driveway of the Finley Rd home, Fiona could hear the smoke alarms blaring.
On entering, she smelled what she believed was the acrid smell of an electrical fire.
As she progressed down the hallway, she saw a fire in her daughter Sheayla’s bedroom.
Luckily, the 17 year-old had joined her on the school trip, along with the family’s dogs.
But her eldest son Josh, 20, was still asleep in the home.
“When I went to investigate, my daughter’s bed was on fire,” Fiona said.
“I saw it jump from the bed to the curtain so I woke my son and we quickly got out, calling the fire brigade as we went down the hallway.
“We already had the dogs with us, but unfortunately we were not able to get our three older cats out.
“When they could go in, the firefighters found them in my bedroom at the front of the house. They were not burned, but probably died from smoke inhalation.
“It was all so scary - but we (my family and I) have our lives.”
Sheayla’s bedroom was at the back right corner of the home, next to the driveway.
It was completely gutted by flames, and part of her little brother’s room on the same side of the house was also burned.
But the rest of the home is also uninhabitable, due to smoke damage and water damage from firefighter efforts.
While Fire + Rescue Deputy Captain Les Booth said the cause of the fire has not been formally determined, Fiona believes it started with her daughter’s phone charger being left on the bed.
The family rent the home through Homes Out West, a regional organisation which saved them from homelessness.
“We were very fortunate to get this house three years ago,” Fiona said.
“We were in Albury and homeless. Homes Out West finally had a home that would fit our family, but the catch was it would be in Deniliquin.
“We didn’t care about having to move. We needed somewhere to live.
“And now I just feel so bad that this has happened.”
Fire + Rescue NSW, Deniliquin Police and NSW Ambulance all responded to the blaze, and Fiona said quite a few locals also offered their assistance.
Dep Capt Booth said when firefighters arrived at the house smoke was billowing out of it, and the fire had spread into the roof.
He said firefighters were able to extinguish the flames quite quickly, but that the home was still significantly damaged.
Fiona said she was thankful of everyone who helped.
“People kept pulling up and offering help.
“One lady, I don’t even know who she was, offered to move my car for me.
“Another brought me coffee. And I must also thank Brick Kiln Creek for providing us with coffee and sandwiches.
“These were people we don’t even know, just passers by, but they stopped.
“It made me feel like I was not alone, but I also felt so alone at the same time.”
The community has also started a Go Fund Me page for Fiona and her family, who were starting to sift through the charred remains of their home on Sunday to see what could be salvaged.
Fiona and her children are currently staying with Fiona’s partner in Moulamein, but are meeting with Homes Out West this week to see what long-term solutions are available.
To donate to help Fiona and her family, please go to www.gofundme.com/f/fiona-and-kids-replacing-everything-they-lost.
Senior journalist