Family left devastated after fire destroys dream home

A MONTCLAIR family was left devastated after a fire destroyed their dream home in Harbour View Avenue, on September 19.

Kyle Oliver, 35, his wife, Pamela, 36, their two children, Ezra Matthew, 3, and Amy Rachel, 2, as well their live-in helper, Sushi Mandishona, 42, managed to escape unharmed but watched as the five-bedroom double-storey house went up in flames, due to an electrical fault.

The couple said September 7, marked a year since they had moved in, and that they were currently in the process of renovating the over 60-year-old house.

Kyle, who works for a bank, and is a musician, said he became concerned after hearing a creaking sound.

“It was about 22:00, the children were already asleep and my wife and I were in bed. We could hear the dogs barking constantly at first, and then what sounded like heavy footsteps. Our first thought was that it is our helper, who lives with us inside the house, probably going to make milk for the baby. We also had wooden floors, so we didn’t think much at first, but the noise continued. We then thought someone was in the house.

“I decided to go and check, and as I walked towards the children’s playroom, I could see these thick clouds of smoke and orange glow. As I got closer to the room, I saw the flames and screamed, ‘fire, get out!’. I ran upstairs to get my children and helper. We managed to get out through the back door,” he said.

Pamela, who works in finance, said she managed to get out through the front door.

“By then the house was completely engulfed with smoke and the lights had gone out. I managed to find the house keys, but I was panicking as I did not know if everyone else was out, but thankfully they all got out safely. I had tried to go back inside to get my handbag as it had all my documents and medication, but I could not as the fire spread fast.  I had recently been hospitalised after suffering an asthma attack and battling a chest infection,” she said.

Kyle said within a few minutes after the family managed to get out, the house was engulfed in flames.

“In less than four minutes, the fire had spread through both levels and all we could do was stand and watch our dream house go up in flames. A short while later the fire department, paramedics, and police arrived. We were given oxygen and then taken to the hospital for further tests as we had inhaled a lot of smoke, but we were fine and discharged a few hours later. The dogs were also fine, they were outside at the back,” he said.

Pamela said she instantly fell in love when she saw the house early last year.

“At the time we were renting, and had been searching for a house for a long-time, but we could not find any house which made us feel like it was the one for us. However, when the agent sent a picture of this house, I just looked at Kyle and told him ‘this is it’, without even thinking twice or seeing the house.

“When I walked through the gate, that first feeling of love, at first sight, came rushing back. We signed for the house the same day and within weeks we moved in. We always said it was God’s will for that house to be our forever home. It was quite big and we were slowly filling each room with furniture, but we did it, each room was done,” she said.

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Pamela said they had also recently started renovations.

“We started after the floods in April caused some damage. We were changing the windows from wooden frames, to aluminum, as well as putting in new roofing, and were going to put new flooring in some parts of the house. I loved every inch of the house, it was old and had a rustic feel, because of the laminated wooden floors.

“We planned to live here forever. Our children would live in the main house with their families. Kyle and I would live in one of the outbuildings on the property. We love family time, and we often have get-togethers and spend hours in the pool, having a braai or cooking a meal on an outside fire,” she said.

Kyle said the house was insured for structural damage, but the household contents were not insured.

“It was found that the fire started due to an electrical fault. However, we will have to start from scratch when the house is rebuilt. We were hoping to find any goods or sentimental items we could salvage, but due to the floors being burnt we could walk through the house. We were only able to find my wife’s favourite pots and some of her Tupperware.

“It is going to be a long road to get back on our feet, but we are grateful that our family is alive and well. However, we are now looking for a place to rent in the interim. According to the assessors, it could take between four to 12 months before the house will be rebuilt,” he said.

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The couple said they were grateful to the community who came to their assistance.

“There has been an amazing response from the community. Our neighbours, some who had jumped over the fence, were trying to put out the fire using a hosepipe and buckets of water. While we were sitting inside the ambulance, we had people bringing us water, blankets and clothes, which we are using to date. Our son’s school had also given us food items. We are grateful for the kindness.

“We are feeling a lot of mixed emotions as we put our everything, sweat, and tears, into making this house a home for our family. It is disheartening that it blew up in smoke. But, the love and support from the community, and even strangers from as far as China, that are empathising and sympathetic towards what we have gone through, makes the pain a bit more bearable. We are just praying that we will be in our home again soon,” he said.

If you would like to assist the family, contact Mark on 076 626 7861 or Pamela on 081 254 4250.

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