Crime & Safety

Unattended Lighted Candle Sparks Fire in Talega

The burning candle was left alone in a second-floor bathroom, where the fire originated.

An unattended lighted candle sparked a fire that tore through a San Clemente home today, fire officials said.

The single-family structure fire was reported at 12:47 p.m. in the 60th block of Via Regalo, Capt. Steve Concialdi of the Orange County Fire Authority said.

The burning candle was left alone in a second-floor bathroom, where the fire originated, Concialdi said.

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The house had a sprinkler system that helped contain the flames until 40 firefighters arrived and put it out by 1:09 p.m., Concialdi said.

There was an estimated $50,000 in structural damage and $30,000 in content loss, he said.

Find out what's happening in San Clementewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

No injuries were reported and it's unknown whether someone was home at the time, according to Concialdi, who said there was a similar fire about a week ago in San Clemente in 28800 block of Via de Luna that also originated from an unattended lighted candle.     A 3-year-old suffered smoke inhalation in that blaze, Concialdi said.

"Orange County Fire wants to stress that if you light a candle, never leave it unattended," Concialdi said. "If you're going to leave the room where it's lit, we strongly recommend you blow them out."

--City News Service


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