Beach Haven house fire suspicious

A fire involving a Housing New Zealand home in Beach Haven is being treated as suspicious by police and firefighters.

Three crews responded to a fire at a house on Lancaster Rd in Beach Haven shortly before 11am on September 8.

Birkenhead station officer Russell Wilkinson said the house was ‘‘pretty well involved in fire’’ when they arrived. Wilkinson said no-one was in the house when the fire broke out. It is being treated as suspicious.

Detective Sergeant Shane Page said police were investigating the fire which had caused extensive damage. They were looking into whether it was linked to another house fire on Lysander Cres on the morning of September 7.

‘‘We are in the very early stages of our investigation and are working closely with fire investigators,’’ Page said.

No one was injured in either fire and crews were working to put out hot spots at Lancaster Rd more than an hour after it started.

Housing New Zealand communications manager Glenn Conway said the property had one occupant on the tenancy agreement but he understood three relatives were also staying at the property at the time.

Neighbour Cam Stavley heard the house’s windows explode and thought someone was letting off fireworks. He called 111 and said fire consumed the house quickly.

ANNA THOMPSON Police are investigating whether two house fires in two days in Beach Haven, including this one at Lancaster Rd, could be linked.