'Humongous flames' engulf Woolston house

Neighbour Mel Watson alerted emergency services to the fire, and filmed the fire.

She was awake because her daughter often woke up in the night.

"I went and sat with my daughter at around 3.40am. There was a gap in her curtains, and I could see a bit of orange and I opened it up and I could just see these huge flames, like just humongous flames."

Watson said that her first thought was to contact 111, and a fire engine arrived only minutes later.

Two fire crews responded to the fire at the villa just before 4am, according to a Fire Service spokesperson.

No injuries were reported.

Neighbour Merv Watts said he could smell the fire when he let his cat out this morning.

He saw the smoke and suddenly, "there were a lot of fire engines here, and cop cars".