House of horrors burnt, demolished

Laid bare: The Wainoni house of horrors, where the bodies of two women were found buried, has finally been demolished after a fourth arson attack. Photo / NZPA

The Christchurch 'house of horrors' is no more.

And its disappearance off the landscape is a huge relief, according to city mayor Bob Parker.

The house, where two bodies were found in a shallow grave, has been demolished today after yet another arson attack.

Firefighters arrived about 5.40am at the Wainoni home where Tisha Lowry and Rebecca Somerville were discovered buried in September to find it well alight.

Greg Crawford, of the Christchurch Fire Service, told NZPA the home was now in the process of being demolished.

"The fire was roaring when we got here this morning," Mr Crawford said.

"It's the fourth arson attack on this particular property and this time it's too dangerous to leave it standing, especially with the northwesterly winds picking up."

Mr Crawford said the other half of the semi-detached property would also be destroyed.

"A huge amount of resources has gone into putting out fires at this property. It was in a state this morning where it had to come down."

Locals gathered to watch the demolition this morning, saying they were pleased to see the house go.

There had been some debate in the community about whether the house should have been demolished earlier following the discovery of the bodies of Ms Lowry and Mrs Somerville.

Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker described an earlier fire as a "turning point" for the community and said at the time said a "memorial to murder most foul has been erased".

Mrs Somerville's husband, Jason, pleaded guilty to murdering his wife and Ms Lowry, his neighbour. He will be sentenced on January 29.

- NZPA