On July 24 at approximately 10:49 a.m., Bainbridge Pubic Safety received a call from E-911 about a structure fire on the 1000 block of Lake Drive.

Fire Chief Doyle Welch said the fire started in the bedroom that was serving as a storage room for the family. Heavy smoke and flames had engulfed the back of the home where the bedroom was located. Welch said it took about 12 minutes for BPS to get the fire under control.

No one was home at the time of the fire, causing Welch to wonder what happened. He, along with his crew searched the room the fire began in and found no traces of any electrical wires being plugged in or any indication of what could have caused it.

Welch took a piece of the flooring that had been burned and sent it to the crime lab, hoping they can provide results in several weeks.

Welch’s only speculation is that a lithium battery possibly got something stuck in it, causing it to overheat and catch on fire. Welch explained new lithium batteries come with a protector so that doesn’t happen as often anymore, but with the fire starting in a storage room the batteries could have been old or pushed up against something.

Welch also thinks maybe the carpeting or floor had a chemical spill on it, but nothing is for certain.

The family of the home is currently clearing out all the damage caused by the fire and can hopefully return to a normal living situation in the coming weeks.