Candles Blamed for Monday Blaze and Two Other Somerville Fires

A Monday morning fire at 130 Sycamore St. that sent one woman to the hospital and left at least six people temporarily homeless was started by a candle, the Somerville Fire Department said in an email sent Wednesday morning.

Fire officials originally thought the Sycamore Street fire was started when a resident fell asleep while smoking, but they now say it was caused by a candle left burning, the email says.

Two other recent fires are also blamed on candles, according to the fire department.

On Sept. 25, a fire at 167 Pearl St. gutted the first floor of the three-story home, sent one resident to the hospital and displaced seven people and a cat.

It was likely started by a candle burning in a bedroom, the fire department said in the email.

On Tuesday, someone left a burning candle on a bathroom sink on the fifth floor of Properzi Manor, a high-rise elderly and disabled housing building in Union Square.

The candle ignited a shower curtain and set off the building's sprinkler system, the email says.

In light of the recent fires, the Somerville Fire Department is urging residents to be careful with candles.

Residents should never leave burning candles unattended and they should always extinguish candles after using them, the fire department said.

What's more, people should put burring candles in a "circle of safety," which means leaving one-foot area around burning candles that is free from things that can ignite, the fire department said.