Father, 5 kids dead after Australia fire

The bodies of a father and his five young sons were pulled from the charred wreckage of their home following a massive blaze on Sunday that engulfed three homes on Australia’s Russell Island.

Queensland police confirmed Sunday that the five young boys — ages 11, 10, four-year-old twins, and a three-year-old — as well as their 34-year-old father, all died in the blaze.

Emergency services responded to reports of a fire just after 6 a.m. Sunday and found the family’s two-story home fully engulfed.

The flames quickly spread to two neighboring homes, the Australian Associated Press reported.

A 28-year-old woman, who is believed to be the children’s mother, was treated for smoke inhalation but was otherwise unharmed.

A 21-year-old woman who was believed to have been inside the house also managed to escape unscathed.

“This poor lady has lost her entire family,” Queensland Police Superintendent Mat Kelly told reporters. “She’s terribly emotionally distressed at the moment but doesn’t have any actual injuries.”

The flames sent massive clouds of smoke above Russell Island, which is home to about 3,700 people.

“[It] is truly tragic as these young boys could have become men into the future,” Kelly said.

At least 30 fire personnel remained at the scene late into Sunday afternoon as officials began investigating the site. Authorities used drones to assess the damage from above.

According to Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Assistant Commissioner John Cawcutt, the entire structure was unstable.

While authorities have checked the homes on either side of the burned-down house, officials will remain on site for several days to ensure more fires don’t break out.

Cawcutt called the blaze “one of the worst fires we’ve had for a long time” and said the many in the small community would be impacted.

“When you get a tragedy like this, it touches many people,” he said.

Nine people were treated at the scene of the blaze for smoke inhalation and minor injuries.

Two were taken to an area hospital in a stable condition.