Tameka Knight was watching a movie alone in her home about 11.40pm on Monday, getting ready for bed, when she heard a commotion outside.

"It was the neighbour in number one yelling out, 'help me, help me!'," Ms Knight said.

"We ran out, not thinking it was a fire, and he's like, 'there's fire, there's fire!'"

Initially in flames was a spare mattress from one of the units. The source of the fire is still being investigated by police but is considered suspicious.

Ms Knight and her neighbours pulled the burning mattress outside, attempting to douse it with water, when they noticed the unit's walls and roof had also caught fire.

"When Coco's (unit one) place went up, we had to run and get my animals," said Ms Knight, who owns a dog, cat and three kittens.

Ms Knight was able to retrieve Ali, her kelpie x American staffy, and at this stage her cat and one kitten have been found safely.

"When we were trying to find the kittens, that's when the firies and the police officers said, 'you need to get out of your house, the roof is on fire'," she recalls.

Scrambling around, Ms Knight hadn't yet realised the fire was spreading fast.

Ms Knight has been described by her mother Christine Clement as selfless, rushing to her neighbour's aid.

"Not thinking of herself, trying to put the fire out, she didn't realise it was in the ceiling and got into her place. It went through two others and into hers," Clement said.

Ms Knight was given 30 seconds to collect whatever she could with the risk of her roof caving in at any moment.

"I grabbed my brother's ashes and a teddy bear that I had since I was a baby and that's all I had time to grab," Ms Knight said.

House fires are an unfortunate part of the Wagga family's history. After Monday evening, three of Ashmont resident Mrs Clement's children have now suffered through house fires.

Her son Terry Mackney tragically lost his life in a 2005 The Channon fire in NSW's Northern Rivers region.

"There was a second there where I panicked," Ms Knight said.

"I thought it was gonna happen again."

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Ms Knight estimates the first unit's roof caved in within 10 minutes and the entire block was ablaze within 20 minutes.

There was nothing the unit's residents and neighbours could do but watch as flames engulfed it.

"All the neighbours came out to see what they could do and see if they could help in any way. Just to give emotional support, really," Ms Knight said.

The block's first unit was occupied by a resident of 11 years.

The second unit, which is believed to have been unoccupied at the time of the fire, by a young couple who had moved in a few months prior.

The third was empty after its resident had recently passed away. And the fourth had been occupied by Ms Knight for almost three years.

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