BEND, OR -- Unattended candles are blamed for starting two fires in two days. Last Thursday, a small apartment fire in Bend resulted in about $1,000 in damage; and the following evening, a Redmond house fire left $20,000 in damage.  

Bend Fire Battalion Chief Dave Howe tells KBND News, "If you have an unattended candle or flame source, and a little breeze blows in and blows the drapes anywhere near the candle - if they're flammable drapes, which they usually are - it can go up instantly. And you're off to the races in a very, very short time."

Working smoke detectors are important. But Howe says flameless candles can prevent a blaze from even starting. And, the department offers LED candles for rent, along with the peace of mind they provide, "Using flameless candles gives the exact same effect, without the hazard." He says, "We rent them a lot to weddings, and May/June/July is wedding season. People are going to be having a lot of graduation parties, end-of-school celebrations, all kinds of things like that, where candles are nice; they're nice to have, but a disastrous fire will ruin the entire evening." Howe says event season can be especially dangerous because people who are celebrating don't always pay attention to candles, especially if there's alcohol involved. 

Click HERE to learn more about Bend's flameless candle rental program.