Candle may have sparked Oak Bluffs house fire

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The Oak Bluffs fire department is investigating whether a candle caused a house fire at 39 Tower Ridge Road last Thursday.

Firefighters responded to an emergency call at 8:30 pm. Assistant fire chief John Rose was among the first to arrive.

“The third story of the building was fully involved,” Mr. Rose said. “Flames coming from the right side and back side of the building.”

Mr. Rose said firefighters entered the building and got the flames knocked down within 20 minutes, containing most of the damage to the upper floor.

The department called for help from Edgartown, which sent a rapid intervention team to stand by in case firefighters inside the burning building got in trouble. With every available truck at the fire scene, Tisbury firefighters were called to cover the Oak Bluffs station in case of another call.

Five people living in the home, all of them Oak Bluffs or Tisbury special police officers, got out safely. No firefighters were hurt.

Mr. Rose said while the official cause of the fire is not yet determined, investigators are looking at whether a candle ignited draperies blowing inward on the windy night.