Fire caused heavy damage to a rental home in the 1800 block of California Street.
Columbus firefighters were sent to 1829 California St. at 10:43 p.m. Friday after several 911 calls about a fire. Flames and heavy smoke were visible when firefighters arrived.
Firefighters removed a window and began to apply water on the flames as other firefighters went inside, and worked to extinguish the fire that had spread to the attic.
No one was home when the fire occurred, said Capt. Mike Wilson, Columbus Fire Department spokesman.
The home is a rental property and the fire department has been unable so far to contact the owners, Wilson said.
Columbus police learned by talking with a relative of the family that rented the home that eight individuals lived there: an adult male, an adult female and six children. None of the individuals were at the home while the fire department was at the scene.
The cause of the fire is undetermined, Wilson said. Damage to the home is estimated at about $50,000 with $15,000 in damage to the contents. Firefighters said the home did have working smoke alarms, which had been installed by Columbus firefighters and the American Red Cross in 2016.
Agencies that assisted at the scene include the Columbus Police Department, Columbus Regional Health EMS, Vectren Energy and Duke Energy.
No injuries were reported at the scene.
