Fire engulfs Springvale ‘squat-house’

The For Sale sign shows the burnt-out property was recently sold. 360772_08 Picture: GARY SISSONS

A recently-sold house in Virginia Street Springvale has been engulfed in fire on Wednesday morning, 13 September.

For more than an hour, twenty-nine FRV and CFA firefighters and 10 appliances battled to bring the blaze under control at the dwelling – which was suspected to be a squat house.

It was reported by multiple triple-0 calls about 8.25am.

An FRV spokesperson said fireys arrived within five minutes to find the single-storey weatherboard building fully alight.

“Varied reports described the house as being vacant or possibly inhabited by squatters.

“Safety procedures have been implemented due to asbestos being present in the building.”

No people were found inside the building, no injuries were reported.

The fire was declared under control at 9.47am.

Its cause had yet to be determined.

Victoria Police and Ambulance Victoria members also assisted at the scene.