Dog and cat killed in Otago house fire - investigator to attend

Crews at the scene of the fire in Stronsa St, Palmerston. Photo / Linda Robertson

Two family pets were killed in a house fire that gutted part of a Palmerston home this afternoon.

The Otago Daily Times was told at the scene there had been no-one home at the time of the fire, 50km north of Dunedin.

Neighbours alerted emergency services after hearing smoke alarms.

While the mother, father and four children who live at the address had been unharmed, a cat and a dog had died in the blaze.

Part of the home was gutted and the other part was severely smoke damaged.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) spokesman said crews were called to reports of a well involved house fire in Stronsa St about 12.20pm today.

Crews from Palmerston and Waikouaiti stations were initially dispatched, but due to the remote location and the nature of the fire, further appliances from Waitati, Willowbank and Dunedin Central were sent too.

The Palmerston and Waikouaiti crews “did extremely well” and were able to knock down the fire substantially, the Fenz spokesman said.

The further responding appliances were then stood down.

A fire investigator will attend as the cause of fire was unknown.

The fire had not been flagged as suspicious at this stage, the spokesman said.