A former police officer will face a Brisbane court today charged with attempted murder after stabbing his wife and two young children.

Police responded to a frantic emergency call from within the home on D’Arcy Road at Carina about 6:30am AEST on Saturday.

They found a 39-year-old woman, a nine-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy with multiple, life-threatening stab wounds.

They remain in a serious but stable condition in hospital after hours of surgery.

The woman’s 41-year-old husband was still at the scene when police arrived.

He was arrested without incident and charged with three counts of attempted murder and two of grievous bodily harm.

He will appear in court today.

Neighbours have reported hearing screams from the house, which remains cordoned off as a crime scene.

They say they are shocked by the incident in what is normally a quiet neighbourhood.

Ambulance officers have described the attack as serious and sickening.

Police Senior Sergeant Murray Crone says support will be offered to emergency services personnel who attended the scene.

“Particularly when children are victims, it’s very confronting for the officers and also the ambulance who attended,” he said.

“We have systems in place so those officers will be offered counselling if they require it.”