Content warning: This story contains strong language.
CCTV footage played to a jury shows a resident of Loafers Lodge telling another, who would later die, that someone was "trying to kill" them after a couch was found ablaze shortly before the fatal fire.
The video was played as evidence during the trial of a 50-year-old man who has denied murdering five people by setting the Wellington boarding hostel alight on 16 May, 2023.
The man, who has name suppression is accused of lighting two fires: the first, under a couch in the third floor lounge and the second, fatal blaze which began in a third floor cupboard, about 90 minutes later.
At the High Court in Wellington the jury was shown CCTV footage of resident Ben Hofmann discovering the couch fire.
He rushed over and poured water from the bottle he was carrying, flipping the couch up to get at the flames, which suddenly leapt higher.
Hofmann was seen running into the kitchen to fetch more water, yelling out to another resident who joined him and helped.
Eventually they dragged a hose from down the hall and put the fire out after a few minutes.
Hofmann was later captured on CCTV talking with another resident, Raymond Lauder, who had asked if it was a false alarm.
"I came down to make a coffee ... look over and the couch is just on fire bro, it was such a close call, I was like what the f***," he said.
"I start throwing water on it, and I get over and look underneath it, and there's like a bit of clothing that's on fire underneath it."
"F***, it was close, bro, it almost spread."
Flames and smoke billow from Loafers Lodge on 16 May 2023. Photo: Supplied / Katelyn Paul
When the video ended, Crown lawyer Grant Burston asked Hofmann: "You described that as such a close call, are you glad you went to get a coffee?"
Hofmann replied: "I've got mixed feelings about the situation. In retrospect ... it wasn't just a close call."
He recalled saying to another resident "this wasn't a cigarette". When Burston asked what he meant, Hofmann said, "it was intentional".
Further footage showed Raymond Lauder saying "some c***'s trying to kill us" after the couch fire was found and put out. He was talking to Kenneth Barnard, who would die in the second fire.
Lauder later told the court he did not go to bed after the first fire.
"My instincts was screaming it wasn't over, so I stuck around," he said.
Later that night, Hofmann would open his door to a wall of smoke, and dial 111.
The call made during the second fire, which would become fatal, was also played to the court.
The call taker asked if there was definitely a fire.
"Yeah it's huge, it's huge, it's huge, it's hot, it's burning bro, there's smoke everywhere, it's burning, it's burning, the top floor's burning, the whole floor, people are stuck there ... the whole level's on fire, bro," Hoffman said.
Fire and Emergency use a skylift to assess damage to Loafers Lodge following the fatal fire on 16 May, 2023. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Throughout the call he could be heard yelling at residents, his voice urgent, telling them to stay low and get out, and directing them to exits.
Hofmann looked pained as he listened to the call from the witness box.
The jury also heard another harrowing emergency call on Thursday.
Throughout the half-hour phone call, Toetu Tui Saili's desperation was clear.
"Get me out of here, I can't breathe, I can't breathe," he said and, at times, yelled.
He was stuck in his room, which was filling with smoke.
The call-taker reassured him help was on the way, and encouraged him to make banging noises every now and then, so he could be heard, although it was clear Saili's energy was waning.
He managed to escape through the skylight on to the roof, from which he was rescued.
Saili was in the witness box while the call was being played, until Justice Churchman asked that he be removed, because he was clearly distressed.
The Crown says the defendant deliberately both fires, and knew people could die as a result.
Crown lawyers understand the man does not dispute that he lit the fires.
His lawyers intend to use an insanity defence.
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