A space heater ignited a fire that destroyed a home in central Emporia on Sunday afternoon.
Emporia Fire Department emergency units were called to a house fire at 1120 Cottonwood St. around noon.
Battalion Chief Tim Webb said there were no injuries as a result of the fire, but the house is a total loss. Heavy damage can be seen inside and outside the home. The siding on one side of the home was warped and melted.
Webb said when fire department crews arrived, they could see heavy smoke pouring from the rear of the home. This morning, fire department officials said the fire was caused by a space heater that was place too close to flammable objects.
Clint Arndt of Emporia owns the house. Jerry Miller and Jennifer Bowyer resided there.
Matt Lyman, a neighbor on Cottonwood Street, said he smelled smoke in his house and went outside to figure out what was going on.
“I came out here and saw flames shooting out of the roof,” Lyman said. “ And I saw rolling smoke.”
Lee Marshall and Maria Granado were in the neighborhood when the fire broke out. They took pictures and video of the fire.
“It was really huge flames and a lot of smoke,” Granado said. “It was basically just really really smoky.”
Marshall, Granado’s fiancé, also witnessed the fire.
“The house was burning and there was a bunch of smoke,” he said. “Lots of people were around talking about what happened.”