Firemen's drinking queried

Mary Chaston was left in her burning house showing no signs of life for up to eight minutes. She died in hospital the next day. Photo / Supplied

A family are waiting for answers as the Fire Service investigates whether its staff had been drinking before going to a fatal fire, and whether more should have been done to save the victim.

Mary Jean Chaston, 87, died after being trapped in her burning home in Rangiora, north of Christchurch, on September 20.

Her husband, Jack Chaston, escaped with the help of a passerby.

But Mrs Chaston's family are worried about the time it took firefighters to get her out of the house after she was initially found with no signs of life.

The Fire Service says up to eight minutes passed between Mrs Chaston being found, and being taken from the house.

She was revived by paramedics, but died in Christchurch Hospital next day.

The Fire Service is carrying out an "operational review", which will also look at whether any of those at the scene had been drinking earlier while off-duty.

Acting Fire Service national commander Bill Butzbach yesterday told the Weekend Herald it was inappropriate for him to talk about the review.

Mrs Chaston's son, Bruce Frampton, said there were questions that needed to be addressed at a coroner's hearing.

"There is a certain amount of controversy over what did happen that night."

Two senior fire officers, Transalpine Fire Region manager Rob Saunders and Rangiora volunteer brigade chief Ross Ditmer, had been at a social barbecue from "about lunchtime" on the day of the fire while off-duty.

Being nearby, both were driven to the fire scene after 9 that evening and "fronted up", Mr Butzbach said.

"I think it's really up to the internal process to identify what happened there.

"But what I'm really sure about is that there is no real correlation between the presence of those two individuals and the outcome of the fire."

Mr Saunders was "just a bystander". Mr Ditmer took charge of the firefighting operation, but would not have made tactical decisions about "who is going to be going where, and doing the rescue and all of that - that would have been done by officers in charge of the fire engine", Mr Butzbach said.

A preliminary report by the Fire Service on the fatal fire states: "The brigade arrived five minutes after the 111 call and were told by the passerby who had rescued the elderly man that the man's wife was in the lounge.

"Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus carefully searched this large, dark, smoke-filled room for 10-12 minutes. When they were certain that she wasn't there, they then began searching adjoining rooms. When the woman was found in a bedroom, the firefighters' air supply warning was sounding.

"They checked her, found no signs of life and retreated so that another two firefighters could come in with fresh breathing apparatus to carry her out."