One dead, others missing in Manapouri house fire

A person has died and others are unaccounted for after a house fire in Southland, police say.

Emergency service were called to the house fire on View Street, Manapouri shortly after 3.30am.

Detective Sergeant Mark McCloy said they were still working to account for all residents.

A scene examination was underway and the cause of the blaze continued to be unexplained, he said.

Neighbour Allan Biggs said a few neighbours had gathered on the street and he could hear the fire crackling.

"With the siren going off, eventually curiosity got the better of me and I got up and just surprised to see the house well alight across the road," Biggs said.

"We do get the odd callout of a fire engine in the middle of the night, but it's usually a traffic accident or something like that, nothing like this before."