'Thought I was going to die': Victims tell of horror as man set himself alight in bank
Survivors who were trapped inside the Springvale Commonwealth Bank when a man set himself on fire have described their terror at being trapped in the burning building.
The young man who marched into the branch, with a large plastic drum of petrol, has been named as Nur Islam, an asylum seeker who arrived by boat, spent time in detention, and who may have acted in anger over a disputed welfare payment.
Whatever got him to that point of retribution, more than 20 people were left terrified and injured when he set himself and the bank alight.
“It was terrifying. And the look on my brother's face, my mum's face,” an emotionally drained Angel Touch said.
Police and customers initially thought this was a terror attack. It wasn't, but it did terrorise; motivated not by religion or politics, just a disturbed, fanatical man who decided innocent people should feel his pain.
Among those, two-year-old ‘Fighter’ who was left traumatised after what he had seen.
"The light just turns off, like, all you can see is that man on fire running up and down and that's the only light that we got,” mum Phalla Kim said.
The family went to the bank with the intention of opening up an account, instead they left devastated and injured.
Cameras showed the moment Nur Islam walked down the road with a large container that he would allegedly use to fill with petrol before walking into the Commonwealth Bank and igniting himself, snatching at customers as they fled.
Two dozen people were injured, while the six worst hit were taken to the Prince Alfred Hospital for specialist treatment.
“He didn't really look angry or anything. He didn't say a word,” victim Claudia Touch said.
Moui Wong was one of 27 people treated for burns and smoke inhalation.
"When she saw the man lit up, she thought it was a terrorist attack, Ms Wong’s mother said.
As a child, Nur Islam left Myanmar for Malaysia seeking asylum here, his boat was intercepted and taken to Christmas Island.
He was transferred to a detention centre at Weipa before he made his way to Brisbane and then to Melbourne.
His friends tell Seven News he was desperate for money to care for his sick sister in Myanmar.
"Mainly mental health issues and then yeah linked to family difficulties and then difficult back home and visa status," his friend Habib said.
“He think like government, the government give him money to him, why bank not give him because like some problem with the bank,” his housemate Joseph added.
