Napier mother of three, serious but stable, after being pulled from burning home

Family and neighbours surveyed the remains of a house fire in Marenui, Napier, where a mother of three was pulled from the house and rushed to Hawke's Bay Hospital. Photo / Warren Buckland

A mother of three pulled from a house fire in Maraenui on Monday afternoon, is now in a serious but stable condition at Hawke's Bay Hospital.

Emergency services were called to the corner of Lister Pl and Lister Cr about 12.30pm on Monday, with the woman flown to hospital in a critical condition.

Her younger sister Delores Kingi and several other family members gathered at the badly burnt brick home on Tuesday, looking for "sentimental things" they could salvage.

Kingi said she was away checking on other family when she got the call about the fire - "my heart dropped".

There were conflicting reports at the time about who was still in the home occupied, by two of her sisters and two young children, Kingi said.

"We've heard different stories that they got pulled out windows, that one of the kids was at the shop with my other sister."

She was now taking care of the two young children, aged 4 and 1.

It was difficult has the family was unable to see her due to alert level 4 restrictions around hospital visits.

"It's all uncertain. There's heaps of what ifs."

Investigations into the cause of the fire, which appeared to have started in the lounge, were ongoing.

Kingi said the family was incredibly grateful to the community for their quick actions and support.

Neighbour Tane Cruickshank rushed to the house fire on Lister Cr, Napier, on Monday afternoon. Photo / Warren Buckland

Neighbour's heroic actions

Tane Cruickshank was among those who quickly responded to the fire.

Cruickshank, who lives in a house opposite on Lister Cr was in the shower when his mother alerted him to the fire.

He threw on some ill-fitting pants and ran to help.

"I was trying to kick down the door and my pants were falling down," he said.

"I ran round the side, banging on windows screaming out to see if anyone was in there."

He then tried to get in through the unlocked backdoor, but found the smoke was too great, describing it as "from the ground to the ceiling".

"I tried to crawl under, but there was so much smoke coming out I couldn't get in there.

"I didn't realise how bad it was."

He said the "toxic smoke" sat in his throat for a long time after, and he was still finding black soot when he blew his nose.

He's just grateful the kids got out and said it could have been a greater tragedy.

"It was a tricky situation. You can only do what you can do."

A Givealittle page set up to help he woman "get back on her feet when she gets out of hospital as she has lost everything and didn't have insurance" had managed to raise over a $1000 as of Tuesday night.

givealittle.co.nz/cause/devastating-house-fire-mother-of-2-lost-everything