Residents living in the Welcome Street flats were forced to evacuate in the early hours of this morning when a fire ignited inside a neighbouring unit.

Firefighters were called to the location at 3.30am, with a crew from Forbes also attending to help.

The 80-year-old male occupant wasn't home at the time and returned to find the unit fully ablaze.

The unit was completely destroyed by the fire.

Those living in the adjacent units were evacuated as firefighters worked to bring the flames under control and prevent it from spreading to other units within the complex and nearby houses.

It took them almost four and a half hours to extinguish the blaze, the fire officially declared out at 7.50am.

No one was injured in the incident but the unit was destroyed.

It took firefighters almost four and a half hours to extinguish the blaze.

Police attended the location as crime scene investigators examined the scene.

Officer In Charge at Parkes Police Inspector Adrian Matthews said the origin of the fire at this stage appears to be in the kitchen area of the unit.

Further investigations are continuing and anyone who may have any information on the incident is asked to call Parkes Police on 6862 9999 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

The unit in Welcome Street was gutted by fire.

Residents in neighbouring units had to be evacuated.