Unattended candle causes Columbus fire, displaces family of 8
COLUMBUS, Ind. (WISH) — A family of eight escaped their Columbus mobile home after it caught fire Wednesday from an unattended candle.
Fire crews responded to a mobile home fire just before 11 a.m. on Rosewood Lane in the Candlelight Village community in Columbus, Indiana. Firefighters arrived at the scene and spoke with a woman who advised that there wasn’t anyone inside the home, a release said.
The woman, identified as Domanika Ramos, told crews that she believed the fire was started in her son’s room. Firefighters went to the bedroom, saw where the fire was, and began an attack.
Ramos told crews that she and her seven children — from ages 2 to 9 — were in the kitchen making lunch until she smelled smoke. She also told firefighters she believed to have left a burning Christmas candle on top of a dresser in her oldest son’s room.
After an investigation by the Columbus Fire Department, it was found that Ramos’ account for what happened aligned with the evidence at the scene. Fire investigators learned a plastic laundry tote was near the burning candle at the top of the dresser and caught fire.
The estimated cost of damages from the fire is $25,000. Due to the damage, the family was displaced, but there were no injuries.
