A Columbus man was displaced Saturday after fire and smoke gutted his home, though it’s unclear what started the blaze.
At 1:15 a.m., three engine companies responded to the home of Jeffrey Talley at 1411 22nd Street North for a structure fire. Firefighters took a little over two hours to extinguish the blaze. No one was injured, according to a Columbus Fire Department report.
Talley, an Army veteran, said he was exiting his bathroom when he noticed the electrical breaker box in the kitchen on fire. The breaker box was next to his stove, where hot grease had been cooking.
“It was going up so fast there was nothing that could be done than to get out of the house and call the fire department,” Talley said.
At least one other person, Talley’s nephew, was in the house at the time.
Talley said some of the wiring in the home was not done correctly. Talley, who works for Turner furniture, had lived at the home for more than 15 months. He’d hoped to fix up the house and rent it.
Captain Mike Gibson was unsure of how many people were in the home at the time of fire.
“The cause is still under investigation, but it appears to be substantial damage and loss,” said Gibson. “We could know the cause by the first of this coming week (Monday).”
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