BY SAUNDRA AMRHEIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MIDDLETOWN -- A discarded cigarette and a neglected candle sparked two of three house fires that kept firefighters busy early Sunday for seven hours, causing total damage of $110,000.
The three fires were unrelated and did not result in injuries, Middletown Fire Lt. Sandy Richardson said. But firefighters were dispatched from one scene to the next from about 10 p.m. until 5 a.m., when they returned.
"Some nights, it's quiet and other nights we can't get back to the station," Lt. Richardson said.
The first fire began at about 10 p.m. Saturday at a two-story, single family house at 2112 Queen Ave., she said. Its cause remains under investigation. It was confined to the first-floor living room. Damage totaled about $40,000.
The second fire started at about 11:10 p.m. at 15 Crawford St., at a two-story single-family home, Lt. Richardson said. The cause appeared to be a cigarette left burning in a couch in the second-floor living room. The fire was confined to the room, a nearby hallway and concealed space between the second floor and the first-floor ceiling.
It caused $50,000 in damage.
The third fire began just before 1 a.m. at 1817 Wayne Ave., in a one-story, single-family home, Lt. Richardson said. A candle burning on a plastic base of a stereo started the blaze.
Only one end of the living room burned, causing about $20,000 in extensive fire, smoke and heat damage.
