A fire that almost destroyed a Naseby holiday home yesterday was thought to have started in a bucket of hot ashes left on the porch.
About 18 Naseby and Ranfurly volunteer firefighters were called to attend the blaze on Avoca St near the village centre about 2.25pm. yesterday.
Naseby Volunteer Fire Brigade deputy chief fire officer John McGirr said no-one was in the house at the time of the fire, which destroyed the kitchen, lounge, and back porch.
Mr McGirr said the fire was not being treated as suspicious.
"Our understanding is someone cleaned out the fireplace and left the hot ashes in a bucket on the back porch, then forgot about them," he said.
He said the house was well alight when emergency services arrived, and two appliances were used.
Firefighters were able to get inside and prevent the fire from spreading to nearby property.
"The nearest house would only be about four metres away. It was very windy, so it was quite a good job for the crews to contain it," he said.
Firefighters spent about 40 minutes getting the blaze under control, and another 40 minutes dampening hot spots.
Although about 50% of the house was destroyed, it was possible the structure could be salvaged, he said.
