A neighbour has rescued a person from inside a burning house in Taranaki in the early hours of this morning.

A young mum who lost everything in a house fire last weekend is overwhelmed at the offers of money, clothing, homeware and food as she rebuilds her shattered life.

Police charged a man with arson after he was caught by a security guard hired to protect vacant houses from suspicious fires, including one that razed a house.

The man who lived in a Mt Maunganui home where an alleged P lab exploded this week always seemed like a good tenant, according to his landlord.

Residents are returning to their houses this morning following a suspected P lab explosion that has injured at least one man.

The fire that engulfed a car with two young children inside while their mother was shopping was accidentally started by a 3-year-old girl.

A 12-year-old bundled newborn twins and another baby through thick black smoke to safety after a pot sterilising bottles sparked a fire in an upper-storey flat.

An investigation is set to be launched this morning into the cause of a fire in the Auckland suburb of Northcote.

A post-mortem examination will be undertaken today on the body of a man who died in a house fire in Tokoroa.

A grass fire that started just before midday on Mt Stewart at Taihape, adjacent to Mataroa Rd/State Highway 1 is still burning.

The person who died in a house fire in Tokoroa last night has been confirmed as a man.

A body has been found at the earthquake-damaged central Christchurch property that burned overnight, police said today.

A 4-year-old boy raised the alarm after a fire broke out in a Hamilton home - but firefighters say smoke alarms would have given more warning.

Neighbours heard a large bang when a Tokoroa house went up in flames, killing one person and leaving another man fighting for his life in Waikato Hospital.