"It doesn't get worse than this." That from a fire commander at the blaze that's claimed multiple lives at Loafer's Lodge on Wellington's Adelaide Road.

The building appears to have caught fire just after midnight Tuesday morning. A converted commerical property - it has rooms for more than 90 residents on the three storeys above a ground floor business.

The lodge has been home to shift workers, elderly people, and deportees - what's been described as a transcient population.

Residents describe crawling and running for their lives in the darkened corridors.

Witnesses say the fire alarms did not initally go off, but were manually activated later.

Many were alerted by other tenants banging on doors, with some witnesses saying the lodge had previously had multiple false alarms.

Firefighters risked their lives to rescue people trapped on the roof with concerns it could collapse at any second.

One person was forced to jump from one of the upper floors. A special urban search and resuce team is on standby to enter when it's safe.

Checkpoint reporter Jimmy Ellingham is in Wellington with the latest information.