A father of three children torched their rental house at Jalan Bendahara, Ipoh, here following a quarrel with his wife.

His action caused five other homes to be razed by the fire.

The house owner, Miss Lim, 36 said the couple have been renting the house for the last seven years.

She said the wife had called her about 5pm, pleading for her to come as her husband had threatened to torch the house following a quarrel between them.

"The wife told me that they have been quarreling for the past few days and asked me to come to the house as the husband was torching the house," she said when met at the scene.

The fire was finally put out at about 6pm today.

According to a source, the wife and the couple's three children were taken to Pasir Puteh police station to lodge a report. Police are on the hunt for the husband, the source added.

Ipoh district police chief Assistant Commissioner Sum Chang Keong when contacted confirmed the incident and said investigations are on-going.