Candles are being blamed for three fires in Fayette County over the past two weeks, one of which completely destroyed a home at Marnelle Mobile Home Park on Ga. Highway 54 West between Fayetteville and Peachtree City.

Caution should be used when burning candles, and they should never be left unattended, said Capt. Pete Nelms of the Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services. In the Marnelle fire, the two residents of the home escaped with their dog after waking up just before 3 a.m. to the smell of smoke, Nelms said.

It took firefighters just over an hour to get the fire under control, Nelms said. The blaze also melted siding on an adjacent home, but no one was hurt, he added.

The two other candle-related fires, reported at a home on the Ga. Highway 85 Connector and a home in Horseman’s Run in the county’s midsection, had minor damage, Nelms said.

Although it can be easy to forget about lit candles, “The rule of thumb is never to leave a candle unattended,” Nelms said.

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