Erica Lee Vuori charged with arson after house fire on Encamp St, Reedy Creek

A woman accused of setting fire to a Gold Coast home allegedly wrote diary entries about “burning down her house” days before the fire, a court has been told.

A woman accused of setting fire to a Gold Coast home allegedly wrote diary entries about “burning down her house”, a court has been told.

Erica Lee Vuori appeared in Southport Magistrates Court on Tuesday, where she faced one charge of arson.

Police allege the 46-year-old started a fire in the rear bedroom of a home on Encamp St, Reedy Creek in the early hours of Monday morning.

A Queensland Fire and Emergency Services spokeswoman said several crews were called to the scene following reports of smoke rising from the single-storey house.

She said firefighters had largely extinguished the flames within 10 minutes of their arrival.

No injuries were reported.

Police soon declared the house a crime scene. Vuori was later charged and taken into custody.

She appeared in court via videolink from the Southport watch-house on Tuesday, with duty lawyer Dave Carlin making an application for her bail.

Mr Carlin claimed the case against his client relied on diary entries written in the week leading up to the fire, which allegedly referenced burning down her house but indicated “no specific plan”.

He said Vuori left her short-term accommodation at the Outrigger Resort in Miami between about 7.40pm Sunday and 2.20am Monday, which was a “fairly wide” period of time and still several hours before emergency services arrived at the scene.

The court was told Vuori was also allegedly seen trying to dispose of clothing, but there was no indication of what it looked like or other physical signs linking her to the fire.

“ (Vuori) denies the offence,” Mr Carlin said.

“My client instructs me she was hospitalised in mid-February, only for a short period of time … her initial belief is she may be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and she’s very motivated to see (a) psychiatrist.”

Mr Carlin said Vuori had no criminal history and was willing to report to police as often as required, along with seek treatment for her mental health concerns.

Magistrate Michelle Dooley said Vuori’s diary entries were “very concerning”, and that she was unable to make a decision regarding bail before Vuori’s “acute” mental health issues were further assessed.

She ordered that Vuori be transferred immediately to an inpatient hospital unit.

Vuori will remain in custody until her matter was again mentioned on Wednesday.