Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) yesterday urged the public to ensure they had working smoke alarms installed in their properties and to test them regularly.
Crews were called to the well-involved fire at an approximately 150sqm house in Barr St, Kenmure, at 11pm on Sunday, a Fenz spokesman said.
The blaze broke out in a bedroom causing extensive damage to the bottom storey.
Smoke also significantly damaged the rest of the structure.
One person received burns to their hands and was treated at the scene before being transported to Dunedin Hospital, he said.
Fenz fire investigator Matt Jones confirmed yesterday the cause of the fire was accidental.
"There were no working smoke alarms at the property ... it could have been potentially fatal."
A stairwell door leading to the first floor had been closed when the fire was found, limiting most of the damage to the ground floor, Mr Jones said.
"The house was filling up with smoke.
"One tenant was asleep and it took a while to wake that person up, and the person that was burnt tried to put the fire out and was burnt from that."
Mr Jones advised the public to make sure their homes had working smoke alarms and to test them regularly.
He recommended long-life battery alarms and an interconnected system, which meant all the alarms would sound at once, regardless of floor level.
"You can't put the price of a smoke alarm over your life."
He urged landlords to make sure there were working smoke alarms in their properties.
Tenants were also responsible for making sure they were well-maintained.
In the event of an unmanageable fire, closing doors behind you once everyone else was out of the building could slow the fire, Mr Jones said.
Electronics such as laptops, vapes and cellphones should also not be left on beds or couches while charging — as they could build up heat on soft surfaces and cause the fabric to catch fire.
Local fire stations offered free of charge home fire safety visits.
"Make sure that you've got working smoke alarms — they save lives.
"We haven't lost anyone in this one, they were very lucky."
