An Oamaru mother who lost "everything" after her home went up in flames yesterday has just told her young daughters the bad news.
Meanwhile, Otago residents are rallying around the family, as offers of clothing flood in and a Dunedin supermarket organises a truck to carry donations north.
Helena Nelson had been away from her Reed St house for 20 minutes and returned to see it engulfed in flames yesterday.
Presents she had just given her two young girls had been destroyed and her 17-year-old Jackson son was being treated for burns at hospital.
Speaking today, Ms Nelson said her son remained in hospital with superficial burns to his face and arm.
He had been napping at the time of the fire, she said.
"They kept asking if their new pool they got for Christmas was full yet, we were still filling it when the fire happened, and if they can get their scooters today.
''[The scooters] are one of the few things that can be seen inside as they are metal.''
Yesterday she told the Otago Daily Times: ''I am in shock. I'm just absolutely gutted. Everything is gone.''
Her partner Jotham Miller had also lost everything in the blaze.
In the wake of the fire social media was flooded with offers of donations for the family.
Moyle's Fresh Choice Green Island supermarket in Dunedin's Main South Rd was acting as a drop-off point for donations, and a van full of donations would head north as soon as it was full.
Oamaru police said yesterday they were treating the fire as suspicious, but Ms Nelson said the cause of the blaze had yet to be determined and she had heard nothing from police.
She called for a halt to speculation about the fire's cause until it was officially confirmed.
