Hair straightening tongs are believed to have caused a fire that severely damaged a York student house.
Fire investigators believe the electrical item had been left switched on in an unoccupied bedroom in Redgrave Close, off Pottery Lane.
One young woman, the only person in the property, had to spend the night with friends after the blaze at about 9.30pm yesterday.
Friends of hers had earlier called the emergency services after smelling smoke and discovering the fire in an upstairs bedroom.
The fire caused severe smoke damage to all the upstairs rooms.
Downstairs rooms in the house also suffered 100 per cent "moderate" smoke damage.
A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service said all the internal doors were open, exposing the entire five-bedroomed property to smoke.
Updated: 10:29 Tuesday, June 17, 2003
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