Woman jailed for Gold Coast arson attack

A Gold Coast woman who asked "What can I use to start a fire?" before lighting a jerry can of petrol outside a unit has been jailed.

Danielle Elizabeth Kennedy, 29, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment after pleading guilty to four charges, including arson, in Southport District Court on Thursday.

The court heard Kennedy, believing an ex-girlfriend of a resident at the unit had stolen from her, gained entry to the property while armed with a hurling stick on the morning of June 6, 2015.

After striking a woman inside the unit on the arm, Kennedy left the property and posed the question about setting a fire to a woman she knew while in another unit.

Shortly afterwards, the court heard, Kennedy bought petrol from a nearby service station and returned to the unit complex.

A resident reported hearing a "whooshing" noise before seeing flames shoot under the unit's door.

He and another resident attempted to put out the fire while others used balconies to escape while the blaze took hold.

After falling down a stairwell, the man described being in a "tunnel of flames" and fearing for his life before escaping the blaze with minor burns.

The court heard Kennedy herself had to be rescued from an upper level of the unit complex and was arrested shortly afterwards despite attempting to deny the fire was her fault.

The court heard an estimated $356,000 in damage was done to the building.

Judge David Kent drew comparisons with the infamous Whiskey Au Go Go fire in the 1970s, which left 15 people dead, in describing Kennedy's conduct.

"People were not only endangered. They were injured," Judge Kent said.

Mr Kent also dismissed a claim by defence barrister Sally Robb that Kennedy's intention had been to "smoke them out" rather than start a fire.

"She was setting a fire on the top floor of the building ... the result she produced was exactly the result she expected," Mr Kent said.

Kennedy will be eligible for parole in November 2018 after serving 18 months.