Fire at Hazel Dell apartments caused by candle

A fire that started when a candle set a mattress ablaze damaged a Hazel Dell apartment Monday afternoon.

The fire was reported at 2:15 p.m. at the ArdenWood Station Apartments, a new complex at 9517 N.E. Hazel Dell Ave.

Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from two sides of a second-floor apartment in the middle floor of a three-story block of six units, said Sarah Walton, a spokeswoman for Clark County Fire District 6.

ArdenWood Station opened last year and is equipped with modern fire sprinklers and alarms. Both systems were triggered, limiting damage and alerting the neighbors, Walton said.

The fire was quickly extinguished, but there was some smoke and water damage.

Four people live in the apartment but were not at home when the fire started, Clark County Deputy Fire Marshal Susan Anderson said. The occupants have a dog, which was out running errands with them. A pet tarantula in the house was not harmed.

The Vancouver Fire Department assisted Fire District 6. In all, four engines responded.

Anderson determined that a lit candle set the mattress on fire. Damage to the building and its contents was estimated at $196,000, Anderson said.