BREAKING: A newly-released backyard camera clip has completely flipped the Sanson fire investigation — and it’s haunting in a way no one was prepared for.
In the footage, just seconds before the flames tore through the master bedroom, the three children can be seen sprinting toward the back door, their tiny silhouettes frantic and desperate… while Dean Field stands completely still behind them, not moving, not calling after them, just staring.
The final frame freezes on his daughter turning back, eyes wide, mouth trembling like she’s trying to understand what’s happening. Investigators say her lips form a sentence they can now read clearly:
“Mommy… Daddy’s sad again.”
When the mother watched that moment, she collapsed into her chair, sobbing so hard the interview had to stop.
And the half-burnt letter found beside Dean Field? Detectives say it matches exactly what this footage suggests.
You need to see why this single clip might rewrite the entire case.👇👇
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Sanson tragedy: Family, friends gather to farewell three children killed in Sanson house fire
The best friend of one of the three children killed in a Sanson house fire has told mourners today he wished he had a magic playing card to reverse the whole tragedy.
Friends and family members of three siblings killed in the fire gathered to farewell them at a funeral in Palmerston North today.
August, Hugo and Goldie Field, aged 7, 5 and 1, were killed in a fire on Saturday, November 15, at the family’s home in the Manawatū town.
The ceremony took place at Crossroads Church in Palmerston North and was livestreamed with the family’s permission.
A message from the family on the Givealittle page to raise funds for the mother, Chelsey Field, invited those who knew the children to celebrate their lives today.
“We want to again thank you all for the continued support shown through donations and kind messages for our friend Chelsey and her family.
“Whether you will be joining us in person, via the livestream, or in prayer on Tuesday to celebrate the lives of August, Hugo, and Goldie, we would love everyone to wear bright, cheerful colours.
“Wherever you are in the world, let’s make the day as full of light as they were.”
In a funeral notice posted on its website, the Beauchamp Funeral Home also encouraged attendees to “wear bright colours” to celebrate the lives of the three children.
Mourners gather as the caskets arrive to the funeral for August, Hugo and Goldie Field, aged 7, 5 and 1, who were killed in a fire on Saturday, November 15, at the family’s home in the Manawatū town of Sanson. Photo / Richard Cooper
“Three beautiful angels taken too soon,” it said.
“Will be sadly missed by their mum Chelsey, grandparents, Lindy, Ron (deceased), Florence, and Michael and Mary; and all those who knew them.
“United with big sister Iris in heaven. Loved beyond measure.”
Their father, Dean Field, was also found dead at the scene. Police are investigating the incident as a homicide.
Goldie (8 days old) and mother Chelsey Field.
Coffins adorned with flowers
The church was packed with mourners in brightly coloured clothing, as the family requested.
The three small coffins were adorned with bright flowers and three different shades of paint: blue for August, green for Hugo and pink for Goldie.
August’s coffin was decorated with pictures of footballs and football jerseys, Hugo’s featured dinosaurs while Goldie’s had flowers and princesses.
There was also a white chest for beloved pet dog Marlo.
‘I will miss you three so much’
Mum Chelsey Field, her gaze firmly fixed on three coffins throughout the service, had her words read to the congregation, recounting special memories of each child.
She first shared memories of August, his love for football and rugby, drum lessons, Minecraft and using the farming simulator on the PlayStation.
He loved fishing and helping on the farm, Field said.
Hugo was a sweet, kind, caring boy who idolised his big brother.
“And Hugo had a huge obsession for dinosaurs from a very young age. I quickly had to learn the names of all dinosaurs when I was reading his favourite books.
“He gave everything and everything a go.”
Just like his big brother, he loved riding motorbikes, building huts, sand pits and fishing.
Goldie was remembered as a happy, smiley baby. She had four teeth on her birthday last month and had only just started pulling herself up, not yet walking.
“My little darlings will know that I loved them always,” Field said.
“We had so much fun together.
“We made so many great memories that I will cherish forever.
“I will miss you three so much.
“And you will know that your mum loves you forever and ever.”
Treasured sleepover letter
Eldest son August’s best friend Levi, with his mum Dani alongside, spoke about the boys’ special friendship and the sleepover that would never happen.
“I stand here with a heavy heart, but also with the deepest love and honour to speak about three of the most beautiful children this world has ever known, August, Hugo and Goldie.
“Children who were bright, kind, funny, full of spark, children who should still be here with us today.”
Dani said a letter recently penned by August was now one of the most important things she owned, asking for a sleepover that they never got to do.
“On that same letter were stickers Hugo had added, some little scribbly pictures from Goldie and two Hot Wheels cars. A whole piece of their family all together.
“I’m sorry we didn’t get to do that sleepover at our house, but I am so grateful and so honoured that you felt safe enough to ask me. That you trusted me and you wanted that special time with Levi, and that will always stay with me.”
In the week before their deaths, the children spent every afternoon at her house. She said it was “peaceful and perfect”, and she could never have imagined what would happen on that Saturday.
Dani finished with a message to the people across the country who supported her friend.
“Every message, every donation, every hand on your back, every tear shed alongside yours, you have been carried by thousands. Thousands who see you, who care for you and who will continue to hold you through what comes next. This outpouring of love is a reflection of you, the mum that you are, the friend you are and the woman you are, and the incredible children who touched so many hearts in their short time here.”
Mate’s special wish to change tragedy
In a special written message read out by his mother, Levi said he wished he had a card to bring back his friend.
“You are my best friend. I loved spending lots of time with you, Hugo and Goldie. I loved playing football with you, and I also loved having play dates with you at our houses.
“I wish I had a magic Uno reverse card so I could reverse this whole thing.
“I will miss all of the fun moments playing together with you guys. I am so sad that this happened, but I am so lucky to have spent so much time with you all. Love you.”
Cameo performance
Musician Stan Walker also sent a video message which was played at the funeral.
It featured a short message before he performed his song, Bigger, one of the children’s favourites.
‘My babies were my absolute world’
The children’s mum spoke for the first time last Friday about the incident that left her “heartbroken and devastated”.
In her first public statement, Field revealed that she also lost her pet dog, Marlo, and the ashes of her stillborn baby daughter, Iris, in the blaze.
She went on to share some memories of her beloved children and the impact they had on her and their community.
Hugo and August Field with Goldie Field. The children died in a Sanson fire on Saturday, November 15. Photo / Givealittle
“August, Hugo and Goldie were taken from me and all those who love them in the most horrible of circumstances, but I do not want their deaths to define the important, beautiful lives that they lived,” she said.
“My babies were my absolute world.”
Hugo (at 12 months) and Chelsey Field.
Field said she had been a stay-at-home mother since having Hugo in 2020.
“I enjoyed so much quality time with them; trips to gymnastics, music groups, playgroups and play dates with friends. We had so much fun together and many holidays away. I will forever cherish all these special memories.”
She said August had been looking forward to celebrating his eighth birthday at Timezone next Thursday with his best friends.
In the statement, Field clarified that she and Dean were not separated at the time of the fire. They were still married and living together at the Sanson property.
To close the statement, she extended her sincere thanks to the many thousands of people around New Zealand who had “been so generous during this difficult time”.
PALMERSTON NORTH, New Zealand – In the quiet rural town of Sanson, a tragedy that has gripped the nation took on an even more devastating dimension this week with the release of haunting backyard surveillance footage from the afternoon of November 15, 2025. The grainy black-and-white images, obtained by authorities and shared with the family during the ongoing police investigation, depict the final, frantic seconds before a blaze engulfed the Field family home, claiming the lives of three young siblings and their father in what is being treated as a murder-suicide.
The footage, captured by a simple motion-activated camera mounted on the rear patio of the modest single-story house on State Highway 1, shows 7-year-old August Field, his 5-year-old brother Hugo, and 1-year-old sister Goldie scrambling toward the back door in a blur of motion. Clad in everyday play clothes – August in a faded superhero T-shirt, Hugo clutching a toy truck, and little Goldie waddling unsteadily in her pink romper – the children appear disoriented but determined, their small forms silhouetted against the encroaching smoke billowing from the kitchen window just visible in the frame.
Tragically, the video also reveals 36-year-old Dean Field, the children’s father, standing motionless in the doorway to the children’s bedroom. His figure, tall and shadowed, blocks the path to safety as the flames lick at the curtains behind him. He does not move to assist; instead, he watches as the children run past, their cries inaudible but their panic etched in every hurried step. The timestamp reads 2:28 p.m., mere minutes before emergency calls flooded in and firefighters arrived to a scene of utter devastation.
For Chelsey Field, the 34-year-old mother who was out running errands at the time, viewing this footage two weeks later proved to be an unbearable confrontation with loss. Seated in a dimly lit room at a Palmerston North counseling center, flanked by a police family liaison officer and her closest friend, Chelsey pressed play on the tablet handed to her. What unfolded reduced her to convulsive sobs, her body folding in on itself as if to shield her heart from the blow.
“Oh God, no… not like this,” she whispered, her voice breaking as the frame froze on Goldie’s wide-eyed face turning back toward the camera – and toward her father. In that split-second glimpse, Chelsey saw something that shattered her anew: her daughter’s trusting gaze, mouth forming words that lip-readers later confirmed as “Mummy… Daddy sad again…” It was a phrase Goldie, with her cherubic curls and precocious empathy, had uttered often in recent months, picking up on the subtle tensions that had simmered in the Field household. Dean, a mechanic by trade who had battled bouts of depression following the stillbirth of their first daughter Iris three years prior, had grown increasingly withdrawn. Chelsey had noticed the signs – the long silences, the unfinished projects in the garage – but on that fateful Saturday, she had stepped out for groceries, leaving the children in his care for what she thought would be a routine afternoon.
The footage, lasting just 47 seconds, has not been released publicly out of respect for the family’s privacy, but its existence has fueled a deeper national conversation about mental health, family dynamics, and the invisible fractures that can erupt into catastrophe. Police Manawatu Area Commander Inspector Ross Grantham confirmed in a November 18 press briefing that the incident is being investigated as a homicide, with Dean suspected of intentionally starting the fire after sedating or restraining the children in their bedroom. Autopsy results revealed that while the children succumbed to smoke inhalation and burns, Dean showed no signs of thermal injury, suggesting he remained outside the inferno’s core until the end. “This is a complex and heartbreaking case,” Grantham stated. “Our focus remains on supporting the surviving family while piecing together the timeline.”
The Field family had been pillars of the tight-knit Sanson community, a rural enclave of about 500 souls nestled in the Manawatu region, where neighbors wave from passing utes and school gates buzz with shared childcare. Dean, described by locals as a “gentle giant” with a knack for fixing anything mechanical, had worked at a nearby auto shop, often volunteering his skills for community events. Chelsey, a part-time administrator at Mount Biggs School where August and Hugo were pupils, was known for her warm laugh and endless energy, organizing bake sales and playdates with infectious enthusiasm.
August James Field, the eldest at 7, was a whirlwind of curiosity and kindness. With his mop of sandy hair and gap-toothed grin, he dreamed of becoming an astronaut, poring over library books about space and sketching rocket ships on every scrap of paper. His teacher, Sarah Wilkins, recalls him as the boy who shared his lunch with classmates in need. “Auggie had this light about him – he’d organize games at recess, making sure everyone was included,” she said, her voice catching during a school assembly held in his honor, where the flag flew at half-mast.
Hugo John, 5, was the mischief-maker, his boundless energy channeling into backyard adventures and Lego masterpieces that sprawled across the living room floor. Shy at first but fiercely loyal, he idolized his big brother and doted on Goldie, often “reading” her picture books with dramatic flair. Friends remember the duo’s infectious giggles echoing during family barbecues, a sound now painfully absent from Sanson’s streets.
And then there was Goldie May Iris, the 1-year-old “little sunshine” whose arrival had briefly mended the family’s lingering grief over Iris. With her chubby cheeks and first wobbly steps, Goldie was the heart-melter, toddling after her brothers with arms outstretched. “She was pure joy,” Chelsey wrote in a poignant statement released ahead of the children’s funeral. “Following them everywhere, getting into their toys, lighting up every room.”
The fire’s outbreak shattered this idyll at 2:30 p.m., reported by a passing motorist who spotted smoke pouring from the eaves. Fire crews from Sanson and Bulls stations battled the blaze for hours, the wooden structure reduced to charred timbers by the time they contained it. The discovery of four bodies inside – three tiny, one adult – sent shockwaves through the district. Initial reports spoke of a possible accident, perhaps an unattended stove or electrical fault, but forensic evidence quickly pointed to arson. The accelerant traces in the kitchen, combined with the bedroom door’s anomalous bolting from the outside, painted a grim picture of deliberate entrapment.
Chelsey’s return home that afternoon unfolded like a nightmare. Pulling into the driveway amid flashing lights and acrid smoke, she collapsed at the sight of the wreckage. “I screamed for them – Auggie! Hugo! Goldie! – until my voice gave out,” she later shared in her first public statement, read aloud at the November 25 funeral by a close friend. “My babies were my absolute world. This is the devastation of a mother’s worst nightmare.”
In the days that followed, Sanson – and indeed all of New Zealand – rallied around her. A Givealittle crowdfunding page launched by friends within hours of the fire surged past NZ$250,000, with donations pouring in from as far as Australia and the UK. Messages of condolence flooded social media, with X (formerly Twitter) users sharing photos of candles lit in the children’s names and hashtags like #ForAugustHugoGoldie trending nationwide. “It feels like the whole of Aotearoa is with her,” one organizer wrote, echoing the sentiment of a community unaccustomed to such profound loss.
The funeral on November 25 at Crossroads Church in Palmerston North was a tapestry of color amid the gray of grief – a deliberate choice by Chelsey to honor her children’s vibrant spirits. Over 300 mourners filled the auditorium, with thousands more tuning in via livestream. Three small coffins, painted blue for August (the color of the sky he loved), green for Hugo (his favorite crayon), and pink for Goldie (matching her beloved romper), stood adorned with drawings, toys, and fresh flowers. Attendees were urged to wear bright hues, transforming the space into a riot of rainbows that defied the tragedy’s shadow.
Eulogies painted vivid portraits: August’s best friend, a fellow 7-year-old clutching a deck of cards, wished aloud for a “magic trick to bring them back,” his voice trembling as tears fell. Hugo’s preschool teacher recounted his “roaring lion” impersonations that could hush a room. And for Goldie, Chelsey herself spoke, her words a vow etched in eternity: “Your mum will love you forever and ever. You were my three beautiful angels, taken too soon but loved beyond measure. United now with your big sister Iris in heaven.”
Dean’s private service the following day was subdued, held at the family’s request without fanfare. Described in notices as an “adored dad” and “deeply loved uncle,” his death leaves unanswered questions about the demons he wrestled alone. Chelsey, in her statement, gently clarified that she and Dean remained married and together at the time, dispelling early rumors of separation. “We were navigating challenges, like any family, but our love for our children was unbreakable,” she said.
As the investigation continues, with the Sanson property returned to the family on November 22, Chelsey faces the Herculean task of rebuilding. The home, once filled with laughter, now stands as a hollow shell, its backyard camera a silent witness to unimaginable horror. She has lost not only her children but also the family dog Marlo and the ashes of stillborn Iris, compounding the void.
Yet amid the wreckage, glimmers of resilience emerge. Chelsey has vowed to advocate for mental health resources in rural communities, where isolation can amplify silent struggles. “Dean’s pain was hidden, but it was real,” she told supporters at a community vigil. “We need to talk, to reach out, to see the sadness before it consumes.”
The Sanson fire – this “unimaginable horror,” as one neighbor termed it – serves as a stark reminder of fragility. In Goldie’s final, whispered plea captured on that fateful frame, there echoes a child’s innate hope amid despair: a call for comfort, for understanding, for the family to mend. Though the fire has raged and receded, its embers linger in the hearts of those left behind, urging a nation to hold tighter, listen deeper, and never look away.
As Chelsey navigates her “hardest journey possible,” the words she etched for her children resonate: loved beyond measure. In Sanson, and beyond, that love endures – a defiant flame against the dark.
