Child, lighter start fire in Gainesville apartment closet

GAINESVILLE - An apartment fire on Park Hill Drive Friday morning started in a closet where a young child was playing with a lighter, according to Gainesville Fire Inspectors.

Firefighters responded to the Norwood Apartments around 10:30 a.m. and spotted smoke coming from a rear window of Apartment 1-E.

The blaze was extinguished quickly and damages were limited to one room of the unit.

Gainesville Fire Marshal Chad Payne determined that the fire started when a juvenile was playing with a lighter in a closet.

"It would appear he was playing with the lighter in the bedroom closet and set some clothes on fire," Captain Keith Smith said.

The child was at home with his mother; both escaped the unit without injury. Damage estimates were placed at $10,000.

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