House fire in Christchurch deemed 'suspicious'

Fire engine generic, Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, January 06, 2007. Photo / Supplied

A fire at an earthquake-damaged home in Christchurch is being treated suspicious.

The structure has become unstable and two properties below have been evacuated.

Emergency services were called to the scene on Richmond Hill road at 6am this morning.
The house was unoccupied at the time of the fire.

Christchurch fire services shift supervisor Andrew Norris said the house had been extensively damaged.

"The fire was visible as the crews approached the house. It was quite a big fire," he said.
An investigation on the cause of the fire is underway.

Two homes further down the hill were evacuated by the fire service as a precaution/
"The [fire damaged] house is on a steep hill and the land has subsided which means it is dropping or slipping so that is being checked by an engineer because it endangers the fire damaged house and it endangers the houses below," Norris said.

A geotechnical engineer is on the scene to assess the risk. Families will not be allowed to re-enter their homes until the land has been determined safe.