'P lab' fire actually 'sculpting mishap'

The Waitakere house that was destroyed by fire after a 'sculpting mishap'. Photo / Natalie Slade

Fire investigators say a blaze which destroyed a west Auckland house yesterday was the result of a sculpting mishap and nothing to do with methamphetamine.

Police had originally suspected the huge fire at the Township Rd, Waitakere house could have been a methamphetamine lab explosion.

But fire safety officer Ray Coleman told NZPA it had been confirmed the fire was not connected to the drug in any way.

"The address is home to a sculptor who uses a lot of heating equipment for heating wax to make castings," Mr Coleman said.

"There was a mishap with that process and it caused the fire which effectively destroyed the house."

Mr Coleman said the sculptor also had LPG cylinders, aerosol cans and other flammable material which further fuelled the fire.

Despite the earlier suspicions, Mr Coleman said the fire service had been able to reassure neighbours, and a nearby kindergarten, that it was not a P lab and they had not been exposed to chemical hazards.

Mr Coleman said the sculptor had been in shock following the fire and had wandered away but he had been found later. He was unsure of the man's condition today.

- NZPA