New Zealand: Deadly hostel fire in Wellington being treated as 'suspicious' by police

A deadly fire which ripped through a hostel in New Zealand's capital on Monday is being treated as suspicious by police.

At least six people died from the blaze at the Loafers Lodge hostel, Wellington, while emergency responders have confirmed that the whereabouts of several others are still unknown.

Officials have not yet been able to conduct a full search of the building after part of it was deemed unsafe.

The scene of the fire has now been handed over to police by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ).

Officers are hoping to enter the building on Wednesday, following a health and safety assessment.

Inspector Dion Bennett, Acting Wellington District Commander, said in a statement: "This scene examination will be an extensive and methodical process, and we expect it to take some time - likely several days.

"Alongside the scene examination, officers will be working to locate and recover those who lost their lives in the fire.

"We know there are many people waiting for news of family and friends - including the residents who escaped the fire and are keenly waiting for news of their fellow tenants.

"I again want to provide the reassurance that we have a large number of officers working on this investigation, with the aim of providing them the answers they need as quickly as possible."

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Police have confirmed that there was a couch fire at Loafers Lodge - which was not reported to emergency services at the time - around two hours earlier than the fatal fire.

Officers are investigating as to whether there is any link between the two fires.

Emergency officials, meanwhile, have confirmed the Loafers Lodge hostel had no fire sprinklers - something which New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said was not required in the country's building code for older properties that would have to be retrofitted.

He told reporters the fire was an "absolute tragedy", adding: "In the fullness of time, of course, there will be a number of investigations about what has happened and why it happened.

"But for now, the focus clearly has to be on dealing with the situation."

Loafers Lodge resident Tala Sili told news outlet RNZ that he saw smoke pouring through under his door and opened it to find the hallway was pitch-black.

"I was on the top floor and I couldn't go through the hallway because there was just too much smoke, so I jumped out the window," he said.

"It was just scary, it was really scary, but I knew I had to jump out the window or just burn inside the building."

He said he fell onto a roof two floors below before he was rescued by paramedics and treated for a sprained ankle.

The Loafers Lodge hostel offered basic, affordable rooms to people of a wide range of ages - some of whom were placed there by government agencies as they were considered vulnerable.

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