Fire officials said a man is lucky to be alive Tuesday after he escaped a fire in his recreational vehicle that was parked in Vancouver’s East Minnehaha neighborhood.
A passer-by called 911 about 7:45 a.m. after seeing flames coming from the RV near the The Grove at 72nd apartment complex, 5302 N.E. 72nd Ave., Clark County Deputy Fire Marshal Susan Anderson said. The man inside, whose name was not released, got out by crawling through a window, Anderson said. Crews from the Vancouver Fire Department quickly put out the flames. Anderson said the man had lit a candle inside a Styrofoam cup on the stove, fell asleep and woke up to flames.
“He had just enough time to get out,” Anderson said.
The 1978 Tioga RV was destroyed. Its owner, who was displaced by the fire, said he would stay with a friend in town, Anderson said. She estimated that the damage to the vehicle and its contents was $3,500.
She said that the lesson to take away from the blaze is to always keep candles in noncombustible containers.
