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A dad of two is fighting for his life and five others, including four children, are badly injured after their catamaran exploded in a "ball of fire" off the Coromandel Peninsula.
A gas leak on the 30-foot Double Trouble caused the explosion when Peter Murray, 50, of Auckland, lit the gas stove to make a cup of tea around 5am yesterday.
Below deck asleep at the time was his son Michael, 15, who has cerebral palsy, Leonie Sherwood, 38, and her three children aged four, six and 12.
The explosion was so powerful it shredded the lifejacket Murray was wearing, blew off the top of the boat, and destroyed the emergency and communications equipment on board.
Murray, who was badly burned, was able to made a desperate call to police for help from his cellphone.
Senior Constable John Morrissey said emergency services arrived within half an hour and found Murray talking and lucid, despite the horrific burns to his face, arms, hands and feet.
"Peter was standing right by the stove when it happened so he has suffered extreme third-degree burns to [various] parts of his body.
"I've been around for a while and I have never seen anything quite as spectacular as this," he said. "The top of the boat has been completely torn back like a piece of paper."
The rescue team were able to help the families from the catamaran and get them back to shore, to the Long Bay Motorcamp, where they had booked in the night before.
Motorcamp owners Gail Walker and Debra Newton were on-hand to help when all six were brought back to the camp.
"It was absolutely horrible - the skin was hanging off his face and you could smell all their flesh burning," said Walker. "All Peter's hair was burned off and his moustache too. Leonie was screaming and screaming and she couldn't move at all.
"The kids looked like they had smaller burns to their hands and behind their ears. They were in shock saying, 'I don't like seeing Mummy cry, make Mummy stop crying'."
They said Murray was more worried about the children, and his son, than he was about himself.
"He would be talking to the Fire Service and ambulance staff about what happened and then he'd yell, 'Just make sure the kids are all right'."
The two families had arrived in the Coromandel the night before and decided to moor off Whanganui Island for the night. After setting up their caravan at the Long Bay Motorcamp, they headed out for some fishing - one of Murray's favourite hobbies.
Debra Newton, who co-owns the motorcamp, said Murray had an immense love for his son. "The nicest thing we saw today when they were being rescued was Peter calling out to Michael to make sure he was okay. Michael just smiled at his dad and you knew it was his way of saying 'I'm all right'. It was really touching."
Chris Deacon, advanced paramedic for Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust, was called out to assist, although local rescue services had already brought the families to shore.
"The man had lit the gas stove to make a cup of tea... for some reason, whether that be a gas leak, I'm not sure, it has exploded. The father was most seriously hurt, he was standing right by the stove when it exploded."
Chief Fire Officer John Walker said the accident might not have happened had there been a gas detector on board. "They are extremely bloody lucky to be alive.
"They had everything else on board to keep them safe except a detector, which may have been all that was needed to prevent the explosion."
He said it was a reminder for boat owners to check their equipment and to make sure gas cylinders were turned off when not being used.
All six were airlifted to Waikato Hospital. Murray was to remain in intensive care overnight.
Murray's neighbour Margo Dell said that he was "a fun-loving, really nice person".
"He's the kind of guy who will always help everyone else before he helps himself - he's always thinking of others first. Everyone around here knows him. He loves fishing, I'm pretty sure it's his favourite thing to do. I just want to wish him and his family and friends well."
A petrol station worker, who wanted to be known as Dave, said: "He's a cool guy, everybody knows him. He's always round here talking to everyone and laughing. He's a real good bloke."
At the Maraetai Beach Boating Club, flags were at half-mast for Ross Kimpton, the Howick College boy who fatally fell from a balcony in London. A member at the club, Robert, said Murray was well known at the club.
"It's really sad that something like this has happened, I'm just shocked. We've already got the flags at half-mast for Ross Kimpton because his dad Murray is a long-time member here. It's not very good that two awful things have happened to people around here so close to one another. I really hope he will be okay."
- additional reporting Alice Hudson.
