Candle causes minor fire in Presque Isle home

4 months ago

An unattended candle is believed to have caused a small fire in a McBurnie Road home Friday evening, Presque Isle Fire Chief Darrell White said.

Fire crews headed to 238 McBurnie Rd. around 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 26, where they found a small, smoldering fire, White said.

No one was injured. The homeowners were present and reported they smelled and saw smoke. Firefighters located some smoldering material and quickly extinguished a small fire, then cleared the home from smoke, White said.

The smoke caused no lasting damage to the home. Homeowners reported a candle had been left burning with no one watching it.

That’s something the fire department warns people against, the chief said.

“We actually do that all the time during fire prevention exercises,” he said. “Don’t leave a candle burning unattended.”


There were no working smoke detectors in the home, where a child also lives, so crews installed two smoke detectors.

Anyone who doesn’t have working smoke detectors should call their local fire department or the American Red Cross, which install the devices free for people who need them, he said.