SPOKANE, Wash. — The Spokane Fire Department on Tuesday afternoon arrived at a house fire that was found to be caused by an unattended candle in the kitchen.
On Oct. 17 around 2:40 p.m., firefighters responded to a house fire on west 21st Avenue in Spokane. Dispatchers indicated that the fire was in the kitchen with people inside retrieving items, pets and attempting to put out the fire.
Seven minutes after the call, crews arrived at the two-story home with smoke coming out the front door.
An ambulance was requested to check on all occupants of the house who had soot on their hands and face.
Occupants told firefighters that the house was unoccupied. When the fire started, their son came home from school and heard the smoke alarms.
When he entered the home he saw a fire burning in the kitchen. The boy grabbed a fire extinguisher to try and put it out. When the first one didn’t work, he went next door to use the neighbors fire extinguisher.
As the fire was still burning, the occupants grabbed their pets and called the Spokane Fire Department.
Once fire crews extinguished the fire, an investigator arrived on scene and determined that the fire had been caused by an unattended candle on the kitchen counter that ignited nearby combustible material.
The estimated amount lost was $100,000, but the value saved was over $400,000.
All occupants of the house and animals which including two reptiles, two dogs and one cat were safe.
