URUMQI: Four people died when their self-built house caught fire at 2:50 am Tuesday in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, local police said.

The four people included three males and one female, with the oldest being 41 years old and the youngest eight years old, according to the Urumqi City Public Security Bureau.

The 70-square-meter brick-and-wood-structured house was almost totally destroyed in the blaze, local police said.

Police said they were investigating the cause of the fire.