A 66-year-old man has been charged with arson after a house fire in Whangamatā overnight that two people narrowly escaped from.
Shortly after 9 o’clock on Sunday night, Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) received several reports regarding a fire in Hauturu St.
![The Whangamatā home was badly damaged in the fire.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/XOA7YVSEERB7ROQJF4RAVUCFJ4.jpeg?auth=417ec6b04a5ae72e6de97cdb9f8c82575dd1ac46ad0bfb732cc5c263288a2740&width=16&height=11&quality=70&smart=true)
Two persons are thought to have escaped the two-storey house, which was heavily damaged by fire.