A house fire has led to a drug raid with police seizing about 150 cannabis plants from a property on Creswick-Newstead Road in Smeaton.
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The Country Fire Authority was called to the small electrical fire at the front of the house at 7.30pm on Thursday.
Ballarat Divisional Response Unit Sergeant Adam Tink said CFA members found a sophisticated hydroponic set up in the rear shed after a search of the area.
The set up involved three separate rooms with about 50 plants of different sizes in each room, along with a large amount of electrical equipment and the hydroponic system.
Police were called to the scene and a crime scene guard remained on watch overnight before investigators arrived at the property about 8am on Friday.
The investigators still could be seen loading the plants and electrical equipment into trucks parked in the driveway at midday.
Sergeant Tink said there was “a definite link” between the cause of the fire and the hydroponic system.
“The fire was initiated from the electrical bypass, which is quite a common thing with hydroponic set ups,” he said at the scene.
“The purpose of the electrical bypass is that it doesn’t meter how much electricity is going out to the hydroponic system.”
Powercor cut off electricity to the premises on Thursday night.
"We're just in the process of dismantling the system and taking the plants out at the moment," Sergeant Tink said.
"We're still at the stage of making some inquiries about who was actually living here – it’s unsure if there were tenants here or if it was owner-occupied, so we are still working that out."
He said investigators would remain at the property for most of the afternoon.
Sergeant Tink said no one seemed to be at the property when CFA arrived at the scene of the fire.
He said police were looking for assistance from the public.
“We’re seeking out anybody who lives locally, if they’ve got any information about who was staying here, car registrations, we would encourage them to call Crime Stoppers or the local police,” Sergeant Tink said.
Crime Stoppers can be contacted on 1800 333 000.