Unattended cooking causes apartment blaze in Queenstown

One person was unconscious inside the apartment when fire crews arrived. Photo / File

Late night would-be-chefs are being warned to always be vigilant when cooking after an unattended pot caused a fire in a Queenstown apartment overnight.

Firefighters were called to an apartment complex on Andrews Rd in the resort town at around 1.20am by neighbours who spotted smoke coming from the unit, a Fire Service spokesman said.

Two crews were sent to the scene, and "on arrival found a pot on the stove smoking away", he said.

One person was unconscious inside the apartment.

The smoke alarms were sounding in the building, but someone had turned them off before fire crews arrived, the spokesman said.

One person was believed to have been taken to hospital by ambulance, he said.

Fire investigators were expected to arrive this morning to examine the cause of the blaze, and would also investigate why the alarms were able to be turned off before fire crews arrived on the scene, the spokesman said.

"For us it highlights the need to always stay vigilant while cooking," he said.