A startled shopper from Worcester Park who returned home to find her house on fire has been told it started after the sun shone onto a mirror.
New Malden fire station, who attended the fire in Manor Drive on July 3, confirmed that fire investigation teams have found the fire was caused by the magnified rays of the sun shining onto a mirror in a bedroom.
Crews from New Malden, Surbiton, Sutton and Wimbledon were called the fire at 1.48pm after a neighbour heard a smoke alarm going off.
The homeowner owner returned to the house while crews were battling the blaze and the fire caused severe damage to the bedroom.
Ten per cent of the upstairs of the house was also damaged by heat and smoke.
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