A fire that destroyed a building in Te Awamutu early this morning is believed to have been deliberately lit.
A hall at the Masonic Lodge was destroyed by fire at 2.15am.
"The building was well-involved in fire when we first arrived," Fire Service shift manager Jaron Phillips said.
"Firefighters searched the building [but] it was totally smoke-logged. The building next door was smoke-logged as well.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME."We have two fire investigators ... at the scene now. They'll be investigating the cause [and] it's being treated as suspicious."
Firefighters managed to save a larger neighbouring building by dampening down hot spots on its roof.
Mr Phillips said there was no early indication of what started the blaze.
