A SHEPPARTON man who died in a house fire at his neighbour's house overnight was there because his other two homes had burned down from his habit of smoking in bed.

The 52-year-old's Sibley Court bungalow caught fire in February, then his house on the same property burnt down on June 30.

His next-door neighbour, a middle-aged woman, offered to take him in while he looked for new accommodation, but her home also caught fire around 1am today.

She escaped unharmed but CFA firefighters found the man's body within a metre of a rear exit.

CFA operations officer Shane Sutton said the man initially escaped from the property but went back in to save the woman's dog, which was later found safe in a back bedroom.

Det-Acting Sgt Shane Kervin said the two previous blazes on the man's property were caused by him smoking in bed.

He said the cause of this morning's blaze was being investigated.

Arson and explosives police attending the scene this morning but Sgt Kervin said the fire was not being treated as suspicious.

"We don't want to jump conclusions but (smoking) will form part of the investigation," he said.

"It is a warning to people in the community and those that are smoking that there are serious dangers about smoking in bed."

Neighbour George Choury, 92, said the man had lived with his mother in Sibley Court until she moved into a retirement home recently.

Mr Choury also said the woman had two young daughters, who fortunately were not at home last night.

Sgt Kervin said the woman's house was "totally destroyed" by the fire.

Mr Sutton said the woman climbed out through a bedroom window and was not able to salvage anything from her home.

The incident follows the death of a man aged in his 60s in a house fire in Melbourne's inner-west yesterday.

Emergency services arrived to find the single-storey weatherboard property in Collett St, Kensington, well alight at 5.15pm.

Crews dragged the man from the house and ambulance officers treated him at the scene but he could not be revived.

The man is believed to have lived at the house.

Investigators are working to establish the cause of the fire but Victoria Police spokeswoman Creina O’Grady said it was not being treated as suspicious.

Meanwhile, two Prahran residents were lucky to survive a fire in their two-storey unit just after midnight.



The two young men woke as their ceiling collapsed but they managed to escape without serious injury.



Both were treated for smoke inhalation and 18 firefighters controlled the blaze in 20 minutes.



The roof, kitchen and lounge room were severely damaged by the fire, the cause of which will also be investigated today.

The MFB today urged Melbourne residents to be vigilant with home fire safety.

“Every life lost is tragic and I urge all Victorians to take preventive action to stop fires occurring in their homes in the first place and knowing what to do if a fire does start. Please do not let this happen to you or your family,” said MFB chief fire officer Shane Wright.

“The cold winter months bring with them an increased risk of house fire and in the last 24 hours we have seen three significant house fires in Melbourne, one of them resulting in the loss of a man’s life," Mr Wright said.

He suggested some steps people can take to reduce the risk of fire over winter:

• Have a working smoke alarm; smoke alarms save lives.

• Check heaters, flues and chimneys are in good working order.

• Turn heaters off when you leave the house or go to bed.

• Never leave cooking, heaters, open fires or candles unattended.

• When using electric blankets, follow manufacturer’s instructions. Don’t leave them on for more than 30 minutes and turn them off when you go to bed.

• Do not dry clothing less than one metre from heaters.

• Never smoke in bed.

• Prepare a home fire escape plan and practise it.