Staff Reports
Columbus firefighters were sent to a report of a structure fire in the 200 block of Hughes Street that turned out to be a tent fire.
Firefighters were sent to the home at 8:16 p.m. Sunday after multiple 911 calls about heavy fire coming from a building in the back yard.
Firefighters arrived on the scene within 4 minutes and reported heavy fire behind a detached garage at that address, said Capt. Mike Wilson, Columbus Fire Department spokesman.
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They discovered that a camping tent and the contents of a small metal storage building were on fire, Wilson said. The location of the fire was near a detached garage, causing fire damage to the detached garage’s siding and wooden fascia boards.
Firefighters encountered a large quantity of stored materials inside the tent and the storage building, Wilson said. Firefighters extinguished the flames and prevented additional fire damages to the detached garage.
Fire department investigators determined that the fire originated in a large tent which was being used as a temporary housing. According to the property owner, Dale Baker, 200 N. Hughes St., one of Baker’s family members was living in the tent located on the property.
The occupant of the tent told investigators that he was not in the tent at the time the fire occurred. The occupant told fire investigators that a space heater device was located inside the tent, but could not confirm if the heating device was operating at the time of the fire.
Firefighters were at the scene for about one hour. The official cause of the fire is undetermined and no injuries were reported. Wilson said.
Damages to the storage building and detached garage were estimated at $3,000, Wilson said.
