Photo/file
A Mount Maunganui man and woman suffered burns after attempts to put out a fire in their Grenada St home.
The man and woman received minor burns when they tried putting out the fire about last night. However, the fire continued to spread.
Firefighters were called to the house about 8.15am.
A faulty battery was blamed for a fire which destroyed a Tauranga business earlier this month.
Click here to read that story and view CCTV footage of the fire as it began.
Neighbours near the Grenada St property told the Bay of Plenty Times this morning they heard a popping noise at about 7.45pm and the house was up in flames.
Windows were also blown out and the iron on the roof had started to melt, they said.
A reporter at the scene said smoke could still be smelt in the air and the house was gutted.
Tauranga fire brigade senior station officer Kevin Cowper said the house was at least half gutted by the fire, and the remainder of the house received serious smoke damage.
Mr Cowper said the man, woman and a young woman had been home at the time the fire started.
''We are investigating whether the fire was caused by cooking,'' Mr Cowper said.
Yesterday, firefighters were still at the scene of a fire which took over a coolstore near Te Puke. The fire was not believed to be suspicious.
Papamoa's after-hours clinic closed in November due to financial challenges.