One person has died and two others are unaccounted for following a fire north of Hanover.

The fire at a home on 5th Avenue Southwest in Chesley was reported at 2:20 a.m. Monday.

Chesley fire chief Robert Bell was the first firefighter to arrive at the scene. He said flames were coming through every window in the house and had spread to a second house.

The first house was destroyed, while the second received significant damage.

A neighbour tells CTV News that a mother and father made it out of the house, along with one child, but the father went inside to try and rescue the other two children. Neither he nor the other children were ever seen leaving the house.

Authorities at the scene said Monday afternoon that they had found one body inside the home.