AN open fireplace caused a fire that extensively damaged a Sale home on Tuesday night.
Just after 7pm, the Country Fire Authority was notified to a single storey weatherboard house on fire in Codrington St.
On arrival, the house was fully engulfed, and CFA volunteers in 11 vehicles from Sale, Traralgon, Stratford, Maffra and Longford brigades worked to bring the fire under control by 7.50pm.
Police and paramedics also attended on standby, but there were no reported patients or injuries.
The Gippsland Times understands the owner was found and accounted for.
A spokesperson for the CFA said the fire served as a timely reminder for those with open fireplaces to ensure adequate fire screens were in place, chimney flues were cleaned and there were no combustibles near open fires.
An online GoFundMe account has been set up by friends to help replace the home owner’s clothes, shoes and personal belongings lost in the fire.
