Occupant escapes Maungati house fire with pets
An occupant escaped unharmed with their pets following a house fire yesterday morning.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand Mid and South Canterbury group manager Stephen Butler said the single storey residential house on Limestone Rd, Maungati, was ‘‘totally lost’’ in the fire which was reported to Fire and Emergency at 3.54am.
‘‘The crews are still there and a fire investigator is at the scene as well,’’ Butler said.
‘‘One person at the property got out safely when the smoke alarm went off. The alarm was still going off when our crews got there.’’
Butler said the house was fully engulfed when crews arrived at the scene and firefighters were still at the site dampening hot spots yesterday afternoon.
‘‘The person was able to shift all their pets to safety,’’ he said.
On its social media page, the Timaru Fire Brigade says the Timaru appliance was first to arrive at the house fire, with backup from the Washdyke career crew, a Timaru tanker crewed by off-duty career firefighters and the St Andrews and Cannington volunteer brigades.
‘‘The first arriving crew managed to prevent fire from spreading to a nearby outbuilding, but unfortunately the house was a total loss.
‘‘Thankfully the occupant managed to escape with their pets unharmed. It is a timely reminder to check your smoke alarms and ensure you have an escape plan in the event of fire and if you live rurally to ensure your driveway is easily accessible for fire appliances.’’