Green River home damaged by fire

An unattended burning candle was the cause of a Green River house fire.

Last Thursday, around 3 p.m. the Green River Fire Department responded to 2265 Hitching Post for a report of a fire.

GRFD Chief Mike Nomis said the volunteer fire department had a quick-response time for that time of the day, which was when all of the schools were being let out. Due to the quick reaction of the firefighters, the fire was contained to the living room. The living room was pretty much burnt up, but the rest of the house only sustained smoke damage, he said.

Those witnessing the fire could see smoke billowing out of the chimney and out of one of the front windows.

Nomis said the fire was so hot it melted the frame around the window, which allowed flames to escape the house.

"It was really hot in that house," Nomis said.

There was a lady in the house at the time of the fire. Nomis said she had lit the candle and forgot to blow it out before taking a nap.

Nomis said he isn't sure how the lady woke up. She could have woke up from either the smoke or the heat. As soon as the lady woke up and saw the fire, she got out of the house.

Even though the fire was put out quickly, the firefighters would have done things a little bit differently. For example: there was a fire hydrant directly across the street from the fire, however the first GRFD fire truck and a Green River Police Department vehicle blocked it from view.

The ladder truck, which was the second truck to pull up, hooked up to a fire hydrant down the street because none of them saw the closest fire hydrant.

This is something the chief and other firefighters noticed later.

As for the cost of the damages, Nomis said he wasn't sure how much all of the damages would cost the home owner.