A candle that was being used to light a room started a fire that caused $85,000 damage to one side of a duplex in the southeast Cape Saturday night during a period where the Cape Coral Fire Department responded to numerous incidents.
At 8:32 p.m., Cape Fire Dispatch received a 911 call reporting smoke coming from the right side of the duplex located at 622 S.E. 13th Terrace. Fire crews arrived on scene to heavy smoke pouring from the front and roof of the duplex. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire by 9:01 p.m. The home had been evacuated prior to the arrival of fire crews, and there were no injuries. The opposite side of the duplex was not damaged.
Cape Fire Investigator Dave Webster arrived on scene to conduct the investigation. Webster found that the fire started in the master bedroom near the closet. The source of the fire was a candle being burned to help light the room after electricity was cut off due to non-payment. The fire has been ruled accidental. The structure was red-tagged by the City’s building inspector, and LCEC arrived to remove the electric meter.
The duplex fire was followed by two more residential structure fires. At 9:20 p.m., Fire crews responded to a fire at an apartment building at 4819 Marine Drive. The occupant in Unit 3 reported light smoke inside the residence. Firefighters found a mattress had been burning. They extinguished the fire within 15 minutes and removed the mattress from the unit. A burning cigarette may have started this fire.
At 9:50 p.m., Cape Fire Dispatch received another 911 call from a resident who reported that the door inside her home was hot to the touch, and she suspected a fire. Firefighters arrived and found another candle fire had started and spread in the living room area. Fire crews extinguished the fire within 15 minutes.
In addition to these three fires in the 2-1/2-hour time period, Cape Fire Rescue also received three medical calls. The Cape Coral Fire Department requested assistance from North Fort Myers and Iona-McGregor fire departments who assisted with station coverage and secondary call responses.

Source: City of Cape Coral