Fire destroyed the home of a family of eight Thursday afternoon, April 25.
Firefighters responded to the blaze at 4:47 p.m. to 1325 19th Ave., the home of Roxanne Beaver-Chelstad and John Chelstad and six children.
Firefighters arrived to find smoke and flames coming from the second-floor windows, said Fire Chief Mike Beaver, who is not related to the home’s residents. When firefighters attacked the fire, the flames were spreading throughout the first floor.
The home had a heavy fuel load, Beaver said. The residence is a total loss, with structural damage estimated at $70,000 to $80,000 and a loss of $25,000 to $30,000 in contents.
The house is owned by Bert Hotchkiss of Sweet Home.
The cause of the fire was an unattended candle upstairs, Beaver said.
Beaver-Chelstad was sleeping upstairs and woke to see the table containing the candle on fire along with the nearby wall. She had the three youngest children, ages 2, 3 and 6, with her. She quickly gathered them and went outside. She was uninjured although her hair was singed, Beaver said.
Bystanders ran inside the house to rescue pets.
The family has received assistance from the Red Cross, Beaver said. A Red Cross statement said the organization provided lodging, food, clothing, comfort kits and medical information. Also, Sweet Home firefighters donated cash from the Volunteer Firefighters Association burnout fund, Beaver said.
The Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District responded with eight pieces of apparatus and 23 firefighters, who controlled and extinguished the fire quickly upon arrival.