Ukrainian police investigate potential fire safety breach after Airbnb fire kills Melbourne charity worker

Julianna Rozek, 34, and her partner, Irish national Darren Martyn, had travelled to the village of Litochky for a weekend trip when the fire swept through the cottage in the early hours of September 6. Both were volunteers for Repair Together, a group that repairs homes in recently liberated areas. According to Serhii Bolvinov, a wood-burning stove was one possible cause of the blaze. According to an early investigation, the most likely cause of their deaths was carbon monoxide poisoning.

Serhii Bolvinov, head of investigations for the national police in Ukraine's Kyiv region, confirmed to the Sydney Morning Herald that police were investigating a potential breach of fire safety regulations at the Airbnb. "This building had not been commissioned or formally put into operation," Bolvinov said. "Therefore, it's quite hard to say that fire safety regulations in that building were approved by any law enforcement and any government in our country, and we are investigating this fact during our investigation."

Police said they interviewed the owner of the property, New York documentary filmmaker Chad Gracia. There is no suggestion that he is responsible, only that an investigation into an Airbnb property registered under his name is underway. According to a 2024 interview, Gracia had bought the plot of land for $12,000 and turned it into a successful Airbnb side business.

To those who knew her, Rozek was a lively and passionate person devoted to supporting Ukraine. She spent most of her life in Melbourne's inner north, started a PhD at RMIT University and worked a council job in Australia. Friend Sasha Sheko described her as very intelligent and principled. "She didn't follow a typical career path, she was very passionate and whatever she was interested in and fixated on she became an expert on it," Sheko said.

Jessica O'Riley recalled Rozek fundraising for Ukraine after the invasion. "She was super fun, super warm, and after the invasion, especially, she was really keen on sharing her culture with everyone," O'Riley said. "She was always raising money for Ukraine. She'd have cooking lessons to teach us how to make traditional dumplings. Her 30th birthday was a fundraiser [...] and she made this massive papier-mache pinata of Putin's face, and you'd pay a donation to hit it."

Friend Jeremy Pryslak said, “For J, there was nothing more important than being in Ukraine and supporting people here in any way conceivable.”

In October, friends held a memorial service at one of Rozek's favourite pubs in Collingwood, live-streamed to friends and family in Ukraine. A DFAT spokesperson confirmed the agency has been in contact with local authorities in Ukraine regarding the death of an Australian citizen.