NEIGHBOURS have paid tribute to a woman who died when her mobile home caught fire.

Investigators now believe 66-year-old Mandie Charman was overcome by the flames at her Portchester home and died from smoke inhalation.

The cause of the mysterious fire at the prefabricated home in Northfield Park, Upper Cornaway Lane is still not known.

Mrs Charman, who is thought to have lived on the site for about three years, was found by firefighters who forced entry to her home through a charred bedroom window.

Two of them used breathing apparatus to search the property and found her collapsed in the hallway.

Friends believe the alarm was raised by Mrs Charman's sister who came to visit her on Tuesday morning.

But when retained firefighters from Portchester and crews from Cosham arrived shortly after 10.45am the fire had burned itself out. The fire could have been out for several hours before it was discovered.

Only the bedroom was damaged and yesterday there were no outward signs of the fire at the quiet residential mobile home park next door to Portchester Crematorium.

One neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: "I didn't know her well, but she was always friendly. It's awful to think she was in there alone and none of us knew."

Fire investigators are looking into the cause of the fire.

Firefighters, investigators and police scenes of crime officers were on the scene for more than five hours but there are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances.