AN investigation is under way after a suspicious fire destroyed most of the front of a home.

The fire broke out just after midnight on Sunday at an empty property in Cromwell Terrace, Chatham.

The cause is being treated as suspicious.

Firefighters from Medway were called out to deal with the flames, which at one stage were billowing out of all the windows and were as tall as the roof.

No one was in the property, which is thought to have been abandoned after another fire during the Christmas period.

A spokesman for Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: “We got the call at 12.12am and found the fire well developed when we arrived.

“We quickly established no one was in the property and we battled with the flames for about an hour.

“We believe it was started deliberately.”

Insp Ian Hunter from Kent Police said: “We are currently investigating the cause of the fire.”