Three people were rescued from a burning building and one was left in a serious condition after a Dunedin property went up in flames. 

The people were all trapped on the second floor of a Melville St property when a raging fire broke out on the property’s first floor on Sunday night, a Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesman said. 

Firefighters were called to the scene shortly after 7pm. 

Three fire trucks initially rushed to the scene, one from Dunedin, one from Roslyn and one from St Kilda. 

"When crews arrived on scene, there were multiple people that required rescue,” the spokesman said. 

Three people were helped out of the burning building by firefighters and search and rescue procedures for an unaccounted fourth person commenced. 

By 7.50pm, a fourth person was located and everyone was declared out of the property. 

Firefighters worked to extinguish the large blaze and by 12.07am it was fully extinguished and crews were able to leave.

Senior Sergeant Iain Notman, of Dunedin said one patient taken to hospital for assessment and several others refused treatment at the scene.

A Hato Hone St John spokesman said the person transported to Dunedin Hospital was in a serious condition.

A fire investigator will investigate the cause of the blaze. 

laine.priestley@odt.co.nz