VIDEO: A fire sparked by a candle being used for warmth destroyed a vehicle Friday morning in the Juniper Ridge area north of Bend, often referred to as “Dirt World.”
At 7:17 a.m., several 911 callers reported a column of smoke in the Juniper Ridge area, near the Central Oregon Irrigation Hydro Plant, on property owned by the City of Bend, Bend Fire & Rescue Deputy Fire Marshal Cindy Kettering said. The first crews to arrive found a passenger vehicle fully engulfed, with fire spreading to a tree and adjacent vegetation.
Kettering said firefighters were able to quickly contain and extinguish the fire, with mutual aid assistance provided by a water tender from Redmond Fire. One person was transported by ambulance to St Charles Medical Center in Bend.
Upon investigation, it was determined that the vehicle, a Nissan Pathfinder SUV, was being used as living quarters and was occupied at the time of the fire. A candle was being used to keep warm, and the candle ignited nearby combustibles inside the vehicle. The vehicle and contents were a complete loss, estimated at $8,000, the fire official said in a news release.
