One person is dead after a house fire in the tiny community of Lower Northfield in Lunenburg County, according to the RCMP.

Police and fire crews were called to Northfield Road around 1:25 p.m. on Thursday.

Sgt. Mark MacPherson said the home was in a rural area with no other houses in sight, and the 911 call came from passersby who were working in the area.

"They stopped and tried to get in the home but were driven back by flames and smoke. It was impossible to get inside the home," he said.

Even once emergency crews arrived there was little they could do to help the person trapped inside. MacPherson and a couple of other officers arrived on the scene less than 10 minutes after the call came through.

"The flames were just, you couldn't even go near the home — you had to stand back a good 100 feet."

Police and fire crews were called to Northfield Road around 1:25 p.m. on Thursday. (Marina von Stackelberg/CBC)

Multiple fire departments turned up to fight the fire, which took hours to get under control. MacPherson said it wasn't until Thursday evening that the fire was put out, and even after that there were still flare-ups.

On Friday at about 10 a.m., an RCMP cadaver dog located human remains in the rubble of the house. Police believe the remains belong to an elderly man who lived alone in the house, but that will need to be confirmed by the medical examiner's office. Several pets also died in the fire.

The medical examiner's autopsy will also confirm the cause of death.

MacPherson said the house appears to be a total loss, as the roof and second floor both partially collapsed onto the main floor.

The cause of the fire hasn't been determined and the fire marshal's office is investigating.