DANDENONG South residents smashed a window in their flaming car after believing a person was trapped inside.
Fire crews were called to a house in Hammond Road at 6am on Saturday and found two cars, a carport, a stack of timber and other items well alight between two units.
Fire officers on scene said shop fittings from a recently closed aquarium were in storage at the garage.
The two vehicles were destroyed in the fire, but fire officers said neighbours originally believed a person was trapped in one of the cars – a white van – and so smashed the rear window to help them escape.
But fire officers said no-one was in the car at the time.
Dandenong and Hallam Country Fire Authority crews extinguished the blaze and police and power company workers were also on scene.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
