The Winfield Fire/EMS Department was dispatched for the report of a house fire in the 100 block of North College at 12:23 a.m. Tuesday morning.
According to a news release from the fire department Wednesday, there was a considerable amount of flames visible and that the occupants had evacuated through a second-story window and were on a roof over the front porch.
When fire crews arrived, they found the occupants had lowered themselves and their toddler to the hood of a pickup truck parked next to the house and jumped to the ground.
Fire crews were able to quickly extinguish the fire, but the house suffered significant damage. The fire was determined to be accidental and caused by a candle that had inadvertently been left burning. The homeowners did have working smoke alarms but were awakened by their dog and discovered the fire.
The fire was concentrated in the living room area of the house and extended to the bedrooms at the front of the house on the second floor. The remaining areas of the house had a considerable amount of heat and smoke damage.
Ark City Fire/EMS, Burden Fire Department, and Udall Fire Department each responded through the departments’ automatic aid agreement and assisted with extinguishing the fire. College Street was blocked by fire trucks and officers with the Winfield Police Department assisted at the scene with traffic control.
The Winfield Fire/EMS Department does have a program to provide and install free smoke alarms to those in need of them.
If you are in need of smoke alarms, please contact the fire department at 620-221-5560 and it will make arrangements to install smoke alarms in your home.
