A person has been found dead after a house fire in Tauranga.
Fire northern communications shift manager Paul Radden said there had been one fatality.
At 12.53pm, the Fire Service received multiple calls about the fire. On arrival, the fire crews found the house well involved and a second call was made, Mr Radden said.
Fire crews from Tauranga, Mount Maunganui and Greerton responded, and Mr Radden said 25 fire fighters were on scene.
The fire was contained but not extinguished.
A specialised fire investigator was en route to find the cause of the fire.
The house, on Moiri Pl, had "flames shooting out the roof", local man Antoon Moonen told the Bay of Plenty Times.
"Then it just went up in a plume of smoke," Mr Moonen said.
Neighbour Mark Wassung said he heard an explosion and ran down the end of his driveway to see if anyone had called emergency services.
A reporter at the scene said there were fire trucks, police cars and ambulances at the scene of the fire.