A Syrian family managed to escape their Mosgiel home unscathed after a fire tore through it.
The family of six has been praised by a fire investigator for having working smoke alarms and a good plan to get out of the burning building safely.
Firefighters were called to Oban St about 8.30pm on Monday, after reports a house was ablaze.
All the residents in the Kainga Ora house had made it outside and were uninjured.
The house itself was gutted by fire and damaged by smoke.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand investigator Scott Lanauze said the residents were looking after each other.
"They’ve got a good support network."
He spent most of yesterday sifting through the blackened ruins inside the house to determine how the fire started.
He believed the fire was sparked on or near an oven in the kitchen, and spread to the range hood.
There were five working smoke alarms in the area near the fire, which helped alert people at the other end of the house, he said.
The family also had a safe meeting place at the front of the house, where firefighters could ensure they were all safe and find out what had happened.
