The Columbia Fire Department responded to a house fire at a duplex late Tuesday evening.
According to the department, the fire started when a mattress at the rear of a home at 1015 Duke St. was ignited by an outside porch light. The two occupants called 911 and escaped unharmed. The department was able to control the fire in under 10 minutes, but Division Chief Dean Martin of the fire department said that one fireman sprained his back during the operation.
The department could not release the fireman’s name.
Department officials estimated damage at $50,000.
— J.T. Quin