Matt Golinski: Celebrity chef fighting for life after house fire that killed his entire family

By
Emma Reynolds

Last updated at 1:57 PM on 27th December 2011

Australian TV chef Matt Golinski

Australian TV chef Matt Golinski

Television chef Matt Golinski today continued his fight for life after a fire ravaged his home and killed his family.

The Ready Steady Cook star fought to save his wife, Rachel, and their three daughters,  Starlia, 10, and 12-year-old twins Sage and Willow, before they died in the blaze that tore through his house on Australia’s Sunshine Coast.

Hours after the family celebrated Christmas together, the celebrity chef was battling third-degree burns that covered 40 per cent of his body, while wife Rachel and his three daughters lay dead.

Mr Golinski remained in a critical
condition this morning at Royal Brisbane Hospital where he is being
treated in the intensive care unit.

Emergency
services in Australia have been criticised over their response to the
tragedy after it was revealed that it took nearly half an hour for
paramedics to reach the chef.

Minister
Neil Roberts said the first ambulance got to the scene 27 minutes after
a call from firefighters who arrived after 12 minutes.

Mr
Roberts said: ‘As with all emergency services there are unpredictable,
unplanned peaks in demand which no one can cater for. I’m confident that
appropriate resourcing was there on the Sunshine Coast.’

Police have said they are not treating the fire as suspicious.

He was found by neighbours at 3.30am ‘burned from head to toe’ screaming ‘my family, my family’ outside his home, according to the Sydney Herald Sun.

A fireman enters Golinski's home after an explosion ripped through the building on Australia's Sunshine Coast

A fireman enters Golinski’s home after an explosion ripped through the building on Australia’s Sunshine Coast

A patient, believed to be Golinski, is taken away from the scene on a stretcher with an umbrella shielding him from the sun

A patient, believed to be Golinski, is taken away from the scene on a stretcher with an umbrella shielding him from the sun

As
more and more floral tributes were left outside the house this morning,
police urged people to lay them at a nearby church instead as fears
that the building would collapse grew.

After being woken by a deafening explosion, neighbours in Tewantin, Queensland, rushed to help Mr Golinski.

Mr Golinski lost his entire family in the tragedy. Pictured are his wife, Rachel, and three daughters, Sage, Starlia and Willow

Mr Golinski lost his entire family in the tragedy. Pictured are his wife, Rachel, and three daughters, Sage, Starlia and Willow

Neighbour Gary Siljac told the Herald Sun that Mr Golinski was worried about his beloved wife Rachel and daughters Starlia and 12-year-old twins Sage and Willow.

‘It was the most heartbreaking thing I have ever seen. There was nothing we could do,’ Mr Siljac said.

‘Those kids were so cute and their mother was always smiling. They were the perfect little family.’

Another
neighbour, Jason Cassidy, said he heard a bang and went outside to see
smoke billowing and ‘a big orange glow’ in the sky.

‘You could feel the heat,’ he said. ‘It was well and truly going. Anyone inside would have had no hope.’

Mr
Golinski suffered serious burns to 40 per cent of his body and is in
intensive care at Royal Brisbane Hospital. He remains in a critical but
stable condition.

Queensland Police are still investigating the cause of the fire, which gutted the timber house.

A
Channel 10 spokeswoman said: ‘We are saddened to hear of the tragic
events surrounding Matt and his family – our thoughts go out to him at
this sad time.’

Emergency services line the road near the family's home where they described hearing the 'deafening' explosion

Emergency services line the road near the family’s home where they described hearing the ‘deafening’ explosion

The house suffered from significant damage in the blast and the fire that followed

The house suffered from significant damage in the blast and the fire that followed

The Australian runs his own tapas restaurant, The Rolling Dolmade, on the Sunshine Coast and has won many local and international awards, including a bronze medal from Bologna’s Internazionale della Cucina Bolognese for cooking fresh pasta.

Friends say the couple were devoted to each other and their daughters, focusing most of their time and energy on their twins, who suffered from a metabolic disorder with symptoms similar to cerebral palsy.

The girls underwent six years of intensive therapy to be able to talk, walk and take part in activities such as cycling and dancing with their older sister.

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The comments below have been moderated in advance.

Terrible, terrible news! My thoughts and prayers are with him at this most difficult time.
Rest eternal grant unto them O Lord and let light perpetual shine upon them.

Mr Golinski – you’re in my prayers, praying you make a full recovery, your family are safe in heaven an if there’s a chance for you to survive and walk this earth for many more years I’m sure they would have wanted that for you, everyone’s rooting for you.

Terrible tragedy. He will need a lot of help physically and mentally to overcome this. Poor man.

How do you ever get over something as horrendous as this ? He’s gonna wish he died along side them, but, with time and close loving people around him he can get over it.
My heart goes out to this fella…

Oh. My. Gosh. I shed tears reading this article. This is almost identical to the Christmas day fire here in the home of Madonna Badger in Connecticut which killed her children and her parents. Fires and burn accidents are terrible because they are so unpredictable: Back in 2001 I wanted a cup (you say cuppa) of tea and asked my husband to microwave a mug of water for 30 seconds. He accidentally microwaved it for 3 minutes or 3:00 (instead of .30) When he took it out of the microwave and put it on the counter the water was boiling inside…next thing we knew the mug exploded…and the water flew to hit the face of our infant sitting in his high chair. He had to be airlifted or taken by helicopter to Miami’s Jackson Memorial Burn Unit. My son’s burns were terrible, but he lived and today has very little scarring and I am eternally grateful to Jackson Memorial Burn Unit. I am so terribly sorry for anyone who has lost loved ones in a fire and these two families have lost all.

Give your wife kids a hug enjoy every minute with them. I too have 3 daughters this story has left a knot in my stomach. My thoughts are with him, he will need a strong support network around him to get over this. Tragic.

there have been some tragic stories regarding house fires in the past 24 hours. it couldnt happen at a worse time either. may they all rest in peace, and i hope Mr Golinski recovers and finds strength to carry on.

So sorry for you mate. They look just lovely. There is no justice in this world.

Heartbreaking. What can be worse than this? My thoughts are with Matt Golinski.

Tragic. Such a sad loss, I hope he fully recovers and there will come a day when he can remember the happy memories. God bless them all.

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