A house under construction in northern East Lansing caught fire early Tuesday morning, sending flames high enough to be visible from about a half-mile away.

Police blocked off traffic in the Hawk Nest Community subdivision near Chandler Road as firefighters battled the blaze under heavy snowfall, isolating it mostly to the garage and second floor.

Heat from the blaze, located at 462 Anhinga Drive, melted siding off a neighboring house that also was unoccupied.

After the white plumes of smoke cleared and fire hoses from the three responding trucks were shut off, a blackened roof frame and melted windows were left in the fire's wake.

Nearby residents said the houses in the subdivision are about 2 years old and that the area is still under development. Some lots remain empty and others are being built.

Josh Richards, a 2001 MSU graduate who lives a few houses down from the structure, noticed the fire while peering outside to check on the weather. Richards said he immediately made a call to 911 at 12:30 a.m.

"I just saw it out my bedroom window," he said as he watched fire crews spray the outside of the smoldering garage.

The two-story home, which was uninhabited and under construction, still had window stickers visible from the street and had yet to be fitted with siding.

Residents on the street said the houses in the Hawk Nest Community sell for around $160,000. Neighbors said the burned residence, along with a unit next door that was damaged by the heat, had been sold.

Allison Meldrum, a dietetics senior who lives across the street from the houses, noticed the flashing lights of the police cars and the fire trucks.

"I was upstairs doing homework and I noticed the flashing lights," she said. "I can't believe I didn't notice it before."

Standing on her porch directly across the street, Meldrum recalls the startling scene.

"The house was ablaze; it was crazy," she said. "I opened the front door and I felt this heat.

"I just couldn't believe it."