Devastated mother of twins who died in Byron Bay house fire begs detectives
The mother of twins who tragically died in a Byron Bay house fire, which was allegedly started by a lit candle, begs the police for answers after their father allegedly left them to attend a bonfire in outside.
Ophelia and Tarrow, both aged 4, were reportedly killed by smoke inhalation after the fire broke out on Sunday morning in an “off-grid” commune of Goonengerry, west of the coastal town.
The tragedy was discovered when the girls’ father, James Wright, and his girlfriend checked the children over and found them unconscious, with smoke billowing from the property, around 4 a.m.
The girls had visited their father – a political activist who was said to have been outside a bonfire when the blaze started – as part of shared parenting arrangements over the weekend.
Heartbreaking calls were made to triple zero for help – but it was too late to save them.
The house was one of 19 estates scattered around the isolated 40 hectare hinterland town of Byron Bay in northern New South Wales.
Ophelia and Tarrow (pictured with their mother) are believed to have died from smoke inhalation after a fire at their Byron Bay home
Residents who choose to live off-grid in the commune of Nunkeri Multi Occupancy see themselves as family and were enjoying a collective bonfire until the early hours of Sunday morning when tragedy struck
“Hurry, babies can’t breathe,” a woman who is said to be the father’s girlfriend told the operator on the phone.
Paramedics arrived shortly after, but neither of the two little girls could be resuscitated.
A lawyer representing the girls’ mother Akira Garton asked detectives investigating the tragedy to determine why the girls were left unattended in the house.
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest any wrongdoing on the part of the girls’ father.
“He was on the ground on his knees, he was crying no no, he was inconsolable,” said a woman from the town.
“Our hearts are broken for him. Jimmy loved his daughters, he took them everywhere with him.
A member of the public cries while holding a bouquet of flowers outside the house where four-year-old twin girls have died following a house fire
The girls slept together in a room near a piano. Sitting on the piano, according to police, was a burning candle that caused the fire
In 2019, Mr. Right ran as the Ballina candidate for the independent state political party Keep Sydney Open.
“I was told Jimmy was wrong, while he was canvassing as a candidate for Keep Sydney Open in the Lower House, the girls were always with him,” said Tyson Kho, CEO of Keep Sydney Open.
Aerial images of the remote bush commune show several dwellings scattered among the trees.
There is no driveway, no fence to separate one house from another. Cars park randomly where their drivers can find space.
The community relies on a water reservoir at the center of the property and it is understood that they will pool their resources where possible.
“They are like family,” a resident told Daily Mail Australia. “They are all so grieving right now.”
The town of 20 houses has been around for 30 years and sits on 40 ha of farmland just a 30-minute drive from Byron Bay
Neighbors laid flowers for the grieving family
Four-year-old twin sisters both died from smoke inhalation after their house caught fire overnight. The house is in a ‘multi-use’ community on this street, 30 km west of Byron Bay
The town is only a 35-minute drive from the hustle and bustle of central Byron Bay – but for locals it’s a world of its own.
While Byron Bay has been gentrified and inundated with vacationers and celebrities, Goonengerry and similar small towns nearby still see themselves as ‘locals only’.
Residents embrace alternative lifestyles and, in simple terms, “enjoy a simple life”.
Those who lived in the commune were all together by the time the father of the twins realized that smoke was rising from the room.
They were still there, shocked and confused, as emergency services arrived and tried to save the girls. A woman was also treated for shock at the scene.
Another woman choked back tears on Sunday as she delivered a bouquet of flowers, leaving them in the mailbox.
A handwritten note was left on one of the bouquets: “Mourning with you”.
Horrified neighbors arrived at the house later on Sunday to drop off bouquets of flowers for the family
The father of the girls is crushed by the death of the twins and “in bad shape”.
‘He blames himself. He’s really shaken up, ”said a neighbor.
Some of the first responders were then forced to deliver the tragic news to the girls’ mother, who was not at home at the time.
“They are shocked, emptied, in mourning. (They have) no words, ”said another friend.
Byron Shire deputy mayor Sarah Ndiaye said locals, especially people living in these types of hinterland communities, were particularly tight-knit.
The loss will be felt by the whole community, she said.
Police remain at the scene as they investigate the cause of Sunday’s fire that killed the twins
“People at the scene obviously came in to check and saw what they saw and the police were called,” said Superintendent Dave Roptell, commander of the Tweed-Byron Police District.
“It is incredibly devastating to see… someone die under these circumstances. But two four-year-old girls is just a tragic set of circumstances.
Detectives will work with fire investigators, who remain at the scene, to determine the exact cause of the blaze.
The house itself suffered little damage.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1-800-333,000.
Police are investigating whether a candle was left burning inside the house overnight
There is no driveway, no fence to separate one house from another. Cars park randomly where their drivers can find a secluded space