Firefighters save outbuilding, contents destroyed

From Staff Reports

   Firefighters from the Elizabethton Fire Department responded to a structure fire late Thursday morning that destroyed the contents of an outbuilding behind a residence at 502A W. F St. The owner suffered no injuries.
   "It was an outbuilding that was being used as a personal office," said EFD Fire Chief Mike Shouse. "It was fixed up pretty nice."
   The contents of the building were destroyed, but the building that contained them is salvageable, Shouse said. The building contained office equipment including a personal computer, typewriter and filing cabinets.
   The owner of the residence, Olena Musick, was not seriously injured in the incident. "She received some singed hair and inhaled some smoke," said Shouse, who added that members of the Carter County Rescue Squad evaluated Musick's condition.
   A match discarded into a trash can may have been the cause of the fire, according to Shouse. "She had gone out to the building and lit some candles for decorative purposes and then went back into the residence," he said.
   While Musick was in the residence, some visitors stopped by and she stayed in the residence approximately 20-30 minutes, Shouse said. "When she returned to the building it was on fire," he said.
   Shouse emphasized the danger of leaving candles burning while unattended.