A FAMILY lost their wooden house at Lolobu Place in Valelevu after it was fully destroyed by fire while they were away attending a birthday celebration.
The fire broke out at about 9.12am yesterday, leaving neighbours scrambling to alert authorities and the homeowners.
According to a neighbour Meresiana Dauloloma said residents were the first to notice the fire as thick black smoke engulfed the house.
“We were alerted when a lady from the nearby house started calling out fire, fire,” she said.
“I looked out and I saw the fire, so we contacted the National Fire Authority, and I also contacted the house owner to inform them, that their house was on fire.”
Ms Dauloloma said a man who was house-sitting at the time managed to escape unharmed.
“The man who was house sitting is believed to be mentally challenged.
“We saw him standing at the front of their door when the fire started, so everyone was calling out to him to jump out.”
Residents watched helplessly as flames engulfed the property before firefighters from the National Fire Authority (NFA) arrived at the scene to contain the blaze, preventing it from spreading to neighbouring homes in the area.
NFA said investigations were continuing to determine how the fire started.
