Man returns home to find house on fire

COLUMBIA — A man arrived home Thursday night just as the Columbia Fire Department was responding to a fire at his house at 412 Hillsdale Road, according to a news release from Battalion Chief Gary L. Warren Jr.

The man opened the front door for fire fighters, who extinguished the fire in less than five minutes.

Investigators have determined that the blaze was an electrical fire that originated on a wall where extension cords were used to power a computer and other equipment. The Columbia Fire Department estimates damages to be $40,000.

The man's neighbor reported the fire to 911; he said he saw a lot of smoke coming from a window on the southwest corner of the house.