We now know what caused a Little Rock home to burn to the ground. In a breaking news update, investigators tell us a stove accidentally left on is what sparked flames in a home on Gristmill, just off of Rodney Parham Saturday night.
"It's unfortunate this house is a total loss and the occupants have lost everything they had, every personal item is gone," explains Little Rock Assistant Fire Marshal, Barry Burke.
Fire investigators don’t want this to happen to you, which is why every year fire departments around the country and here in Arkansas have Fire Prevention Week. "All fires are preventable, but we're human, we all make mistakes, this fire is caused by a stove left on. One of the family members had been cooking and forgot to turn it off," says Burke. A mistake, investigators say a 15 year old made when he left the stove on and left. A family of six rented this home on Gristmill from Keith Newgent. "I got here, it took my breath away to see the damage, it's pretty shocking, but you just take it and go on," says Newgent.
This year's fire prevention week focuses on burn awareness prevention and the leading causes of home fires. "Unattended cooking fires are the most common fires we have in Little Rock," says Burke.
PSA's will run throughout the week. Starting Monday, fire stations across the state will host events, hand out fire prevention materials and firefighters will also visit schools. The goal is to make people aware. "Remember that your house can burn; remember that you can prevent it. Be very careful, but you know, fires like this, you can see what can happen and luckily no one was in the house," says Burke.
Both the homeowner and the renters have insurance. The family renting the home tells us they hope others will learn from this accident. They are staying in a hotel provided by the Red Cross.
