Rowan Baxter posted loving tributes to his kids on Facebook. Photo / Facebook
Rowan Baxter posted loving tributes to his kids on Facebook. Photo / Facebook
The father at the centre of the car fire in Brisbane that left three children dead posted loving tributes to his kids in the weeks before the horrific incident.
Former Warriors player and CrossFit coach Rowan Baxter's Facebook page is littered with photos and videos of his three children, who are believed to have died along with their father in the blaze in Camp Hill this morning.
The fire left his wife Hannah Baxter, a fellow fitness coach at the couple's Integr8 Fitness in Capalaba, in a critical condition with severe burns.
Baxter captioned the photo, 'Goodnight my babies. Daddy loves you.' Photo / Facebook
The Courier Mail reports the couple were involved in a custody battle and police had been called to previous family violence incidents.
"T-R-E-Y. Love you to the moon and back #daddy," Baxter posted last week, with a photo of his smiling son.
Another photo of Baxter, a Warriors squad member in 2005, cradling his young baby was captioned, "Goodnight my babies. Daddy loves you."
Photos show the fitness-focused family doing handstands at their gym, where Hannah Baxter taught children's CrossFit classes.
The family were fitness-focused. Photo / Facebook
Last month, he posted a video rough-housing with the children with the caption, "Sweet dreams my babies xo. Love you to the moon and back #nowords #dad #myworld."
Another video from September shows Baxter holding a handstand while the three children hit him with pool noodles.
"Human piñatas," he wrote. "When mums away the kids will play & that's including me. They smashed me for about an hour & the laughs were just uncontrollable … #daddydaycare #myworld #familyfun #handstands #fun."
Rowan and Hannah Baxter ran CrossFit gym Integr8 Fitness. Photo / Facebook
Comments on his Facebook profile hint at the ongoing troubles.
"Chin up brother everything will work out just hang in there my bro a lot of people care about you and the situation your facing," one friend wrote underneath a post.
In May last year, Baxter shared a Facebook image with statistics about male suicide. "84 men a week take their own life," it said. "75 per cent of all suicides are male. 25 per cent of men live with a mental illness. Men are less likely to get help. Speak out, talking saves lives."
WHERE TO GET HELP: If you are worried about your or someone else's mental health, the best place to get help is your GP or local mental health provider. However, if you or someone else is in danger or endangering others, call police immediately on 111. OR IF YOU NEED TO TALK TO SOMEONE ELSE: • 0800 543 354 (0800 LIFELINE) or free text 4357 (HELP) (available 24/7) • https://www.lifeline.org.nz/services/suicide-crisis-helpline • YOUTHLINE: 0800 376 633 • NEED TO TALK? Free call or text 1737 (available 24/7) • KIDSLINE: 0800 543 754 (available 24/7) • WHATSUP: 0800 942 8787 (1pm to 11pm) • DEPRESSION HELPLINE: 0800 111 757 or TEXT 4202
