AFD: Cell Phone Is Culprit In North Amarillo Fire

Fire destroys an Amarillo home and damages another.

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The Amarillo Fire Department was called out to a home on the 800 block of South Florida, at 11:49 PM on Tuesday, January 24th after receiving multiple calls.  When arriving on the scene, firefighters found a home with heavy smoke and fire from the front corner of the house.

Firefighters fought the fire by putting water through the front bedroom window.  This served to cool the room down so the Amarillo Fire Department could enter the house.  Once inside the house, firefighters found heavy smoke and extreme heat conditions.  They were able to get the fire under control and finally extinguish the fire.

A person was in the home when the fire started, but they made it out safely, and no injuries were reported.

The Fire Marshall's Office investigated and found the cause of the fire to be accidental. 

The fire started due to the occupant of the home charging their phone on a bed with a homemade charger they had made with a chain of batter packs.  The battery pack ignited on the mattress.

The next-door home was also damaged in the fire.  The home had a broken window and melted siding.

The lesson to be learned is, do not charge your phone on your bed, and do not charge it with a homemade battery pack charger.   Always use a charger that is designed for your phone and plugs into a wall, and make sure your phone isn't on your bed and is on a solid surface.