One home in Brampton is a total loss and another has been temporarily declared unfit to occupy following an intense, three-alarm fire early Wednesday.

Emergency crews were called to 61 Vintage Gate, in the area of Chingacousy Road and Bovaird Drive, after the home broke out in flames just after 4 a.m.

The adjoining home at 63 Vintage Gate also suffered heavy damage, rendering it uninhabitable, Gordon Smith, a City of Brampton spokesperson, told CTV Toronto.

"If you can picture a campfire, this was a big one, and the heat energy coming off it drove everybody back quite a distance," Gary Jarrett of Brampton Fire told CTV News at the scene earlier.

Aerial pumps were throwing 1,000 gallons of water per minute on the fire, he said.

At least 10 homes were evacuated during the worst of the blaze. The residents were taken to nearby St. Angela's Catholic School as a precaution.

"We wanted to make sure they were safe too," Jarrett said.

Peel's fire department is investigating the cause of the blaze, as is the Ontario Fire Marshall's Office, Smith said.

One neighbour reported hearing a loud bang shortly before the blaze.

A tenant at 61 Vintage Gate couldn't be initially located. However, Smith said he has been found and is being interviewed by Peel police. The person is not considered a person of interest at this time, he said.

At one point, crews were waiting for the arrival of heavy equipment on Wednesday afternoon so the ruins of 61 Vintage Gate could be completely demolished, Smith said.