A VACANT house and bungalow at Purnim were destroyed by fire early yesterday morning.
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Country Fire Authority region five duty officer Henry Barton said emergency services were called to the blaze at the farm house about four kilometres west of Purnim on the Hopkins Highway just before midnight.
He said when firefighters arrived the property was totally engulfed with flames coming out of the roof and windows.
Mr Barton said a CFA investigator and police detectives were being called in to determine the cause of the blaze. Mr Barton said the three-bedroom weatherboard house and semi-detached sleepout/office, valued at about $100,000, were totally destroyed.
The duty officer said the house was quite old and irregularly used.
“We got the call at 11.59pm Sunday,” he said.
‘‘A passer-by heading to Warrnambool raised the alarm. We and police were there until 3.30am.’’
Detective Senior Constable Jason Bourke, of the Warrnambool police crime investigation unit, said the house was set back off the road and on the north side of the Hopkins Highway, which may have made it difficult for passing drivers to see the fire.