Firefighters were called to a major house fire in Otumoetai, Tauranga. The road was blocked as they worked to battle the blaze.
A child playing with a lighter is believed to have started the fire that destroyed a house in Otumoetai yesterday.
The fire service was called about 8.45am to the Otumoetai Rd house, which was engulfed by thick black smoke with flames coming out the windows.
Greerton Fire Brigadestation officer Steve Wright said when his men arrived they quickly determined no one was left inside then began to tackle the blaze, which took three fire trucks and 12 firefighters 45 minutes to put out.
Mr Wright said a child had been playing in a bedroom with a lighter.
He understood there were no smoke alarms. The tenants belongings were lost in the fire.
Makere Tawa and her partner, Adrian Tioriori, lived in a shed on the property. Ms Tawa said she had been inside the house just before the fire, but had returned to the shed to get something.
It took 45 minutes, three fire trucks and 12 fire fighters to battle the blaze. Photo/John Borren
"I don't know what happened. It just happened so fast. We walked outside and, next minute, it's smoking. We tried to put the fire out but we couldn't get back in the house.
"I have never seen anything go up that fast. By the time we had evacuated all the kids, the windows were already popping and the flames were coming out the top of the roof."
The son of a previous owner of the property said he was upset to see the house destroyed.
The three-bedroom, one-bathroom rimu house had been the pride and joy of his mother, who died about three years ago.
He understood a "lovely family" lived in the house now and he was gutted for them.
His own grandchildren had "bawled their eyes out" at the sight of the house.
Mr Wright, of the fire service, said the fire was a timely reminder to families that if children were playing with lighters and matches, to take them away at once and keep them out of reach.
If children made a habit of playing with matches or lighters, the fire service had trained staff who would be happy to speak to them in a non-threatening manner, he said.
