A blaze that destroyed most of a Rotorua family's possessions was the latest in a spate of fires caused by electric blankets.
Solo mother Michelle Edwards and her four children aged 14, 12, 10 and 8 escaped the fire at their Clayton Rd rental property on Monday morning.
Rotorua fire brigade fire safety investigator Stuart Bootten said it was caused by an old electric blanket.
Family spokeswoman Rachel Edwards said her sister-in-law, Michelle, and the children were still dealing with the trauma of the fire. The family had no contents insurance.
"It's been so overwhelming with people calling her and really traumatic, the realisation of how close they came, it could have been totally different," Rachel said.