Bowral Captain Scott McIntosh believes the fire started at the rear of the house, and although not confirmed, said the fire was deliberately lit.

“It’s hard to say, but I suspect the fire is a result of arson,” Captain McIntosh said.

Flames up to 10m high met the local fire units when they arrived at the Bowral Road house, fuelled by wooden building materials that filled the property.

It took Bowral and Mittagong firefighters 30 minutes to contain the blaze, but they received the emergency call too late to save the house from destruction.

“It had flames a good 10m in the air,” Bowral Captain Scott McIntosh said.

“It was well and truly going when we arrived.”

No one was injured by the fire.

The unoccupied house is owned by local builder Garry Turland, who assisted firefighters during the operation.

Captain McIntosh said the intense heat generated by the fire meant it took the emergency personnel a lot longer to completely extinguish the fire.

“We don’t always get the hotspots - especially with a fire that hot,” he said.

Wooden ceilings, floors and walls ensured the fire burned strongly, but Captain McIntosh said there was little danger of the fire spreading outside the property.

“There were no exposures around it,” he said.

The fire reignited a short while after the blaze was subdued, as firefighters were called to two minor incidents in Bowral at the same time.

Police investigations are continuing into the incident.