Five candles twisted together in a pan and ignited with strips of newspaper spread into a blaze early yesterday that caused $175,000 damage to a City Heights house.
A man and woman, who lit the fire inside their home on Auburn Drive to stay warm, were left homeless with minor burns and smoke inhalation.
The blaze gutted the two-bedroom house near Loris Street, causing $150,000 damage to the house and $25,000 to its contents.
The burning newspaper and candles initially spread to a mattress in a bedroom. When the man tried to throw the mattress out a window, he kicked over a plastic trash can beneath the pan, officials said, and the fire spread through the bedroom and then the rest of the house.
The two victims were not identified yesterday by the San Diego Fire Department, which cited restrictions in a federal privacy law.
Department spokesman Maurice Luque said the couple refused to be transported to a San Diego hospital for treatment. He said the American Red Cross was contacted and asked to help the couple.
The American Red Cross could not be reached yesterday to comment.
