MALTBY, Wash. -- Hot weather and dry conditions increased fire danger as a house fire and several brush fires erupted over the past few weeks.

Investigators now believe that an early-morning house fire near Maltby on Friday may have started inside a car located in the garage. When crews arrived and realized the house was a total loss, they quickly turned their attention to all the tinder-dry trees and brush surrounding the property.

"People worry about that when a house catches on fire you don't want it to spread through the trees," said neighbor Rose Beede.

WATCH IT: House Burns In Maltby
WATCH IT: Hot Weather Brings Fire Danger

Beede lives next door to the house that burned and said she heard the fire soon after it flared up.

"I heard a noise like fireworks, so I sat up and I saw what looked like a bonfire," said Beede. "By that time his house was all up in flames."

The man who lives in the home got out safely. The loss is estimated at $500,000.

On Thursday night, a brush fire in a neighborhood southwest of Yelm also had the potential to spread.

It burned very close to the wooden fences along the backyards of homes but never reached them.