LONGWOOD, Fla. – A fire severely damaged a 4,000-square-foot Longwood home, but no one was injured in the blaze.
The fire broke out around 2 a.m. Thursday in the 1900 block of Wingfield Drive near Markham Woods Road.
The homeowner, who was the only one inside the house, said he was in his pajamas and brushing his teeth when he felt heat coming from a wall.
He said he then saw flames and tried to extinguish the fire but couldn't.
The man said he had turned his fireplace off earlier in the night, but fire officials say the blaze somehow started in the attic.
"The fire could have been burning for hours in the attic. We don't know. But from the extent of the damage, it appears the fire was burning undetected for hours," Seminole County fire Battalion Chief Paul Algeri said. "Should he have went to bed, it could have been a lot worse."
The homeowner is now staying with neighbors.