Te Anau woman was trapped upstairs after a faulty washing machine filled her house with smoke yesterday.
Te Anau chief fire officer Graeme Humphries said the woman was upstairs at her home in Homer St when it became filled with smoke about 12.40pm.
She could not get back downstairs so called emergency services and waited on her veranda for the fire brigade to arrive.
Mr Humphries said fire fighters discovered a faulty washing machine, which had been running at the time, had caused the smoke but no flames.
"We cleared the smoke and she was able to walk down the stairs and get out. Ambulance attended and checked her out but she was fine," he said.
The house was not damaged but the woman would need a new washing machine, he said.
