Palace Backpackers Memorial

Childers palace backpackers hostel fire - 2000

Tragic events throughout history

Backpackers die after an arson attack on the hostel they are staying in. Queensland Australia.

AUSTRALIA: CHILDERS: BRITAIN'S PRINCESS ANNE VISIT

English/Nat

Princess Anne visited the outback Australian town, where a fire at a backpackers' hostel killed 15 people, six of them British.

Hundreds of people, including survivors of the fire, lined the streets on Sunday to greet the Princess.

The police investigation into the blaze continued - with police on Sunday expected to question fruit picker Robert Long.

About 2-thousand people turned out to see Britain's Princess Anne - who made a special trip to Childers in Queensland Australia.

The Princess came to pay her respects to the victims of the hostel blaze on June 23.

She's in Australia to attend a fund raising dinner for the British Olympic team.

Childers, an agricultural town of 1-500 people situated 315 kilometers (195 miles) north of the state capital of Brisbane, is popular among backpackers who go there for temporary fruit picking work.

She was given a warm welcome by the locals who all waited patiently to catch a glimpse.

Princess Anne then met and talked to some of the survivors of the tragedy.

The Princess then laid flowers at a memorial in Childers for the 15 travellers who died.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
It's comforting, really. That's all. The people of Childers deserve it as well.
SUPER CAPTION: British survivor

Princess Anne also inspected the hostel's charred remains and met with emergency service officers.

Six British backpackers were among those who perished as flames engulfed the Palace Backpackers Hostel.

The other victims included four Australians, two Dutch, one Irish, one Japanese and one South Korean.

Police were expected to question itinerant fruit picker Robert John Long on Sunday in connection with the blaze.

Long has already been charged with attempted murder for stabbing a police officer when he was arrested on Wednesday.

Police say they shot Long after he allegedly stabbed the officer.

Although the cause of the fire has not officially been confirmed, police are investigating the possibility of arson.


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Childers Hostel Fire (Part 3) - National Nine News Brisbane (2000)

Coverage of the Childers Hostel Fire from the June 25, 2000 edition of National Nine News Brisbane with Mike London and Jillian Whiting:

The people of Childers are beginning to arrive for tonight's memorial service led by the Governor General, Sir William Dean.

The man police want to talk to in relation to the backpacker tragedy, Robert Paul Long, has not been found.

Police today revised the nationalities of the 15 dead or missing. The Australian count was adjusted to four, and includes twin sisters from Western Australia aged in their early twenties.

Reports compiled by Karl Stefanovic and Melanie Wendt.

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