For the second time this year, the Ames Fire Department responded to a house fire that appeared to be caused by a wood burning stove.

At 12:20 a.m. Monday, fire officials received a 911 call to Sylvia Carter’s house, 510 Forest Glen, from Jonah Coleman, Ames resident.

“We saw it getting oranger and oranger through the cracks in our blinds,” Coleman said. “So we ran down and knocked on the door.”

He said when Carter answered the door, burning shingles were falling from the roof. He said they informed her of the fire and told her they had called 911.

“She wanted to get some things from the house before she left,” Coleman said. “She didn’t seem in any hurry to leave.”

While Carter was gathering her things, the Ames Fire Department arrived on the scene with 12 firefighters.

“We had her exit the house and then proceeded to assess the situation,” Deputy Fire Chief Paul Sandoval said. “The fire appeared to be confined to the attic and roof, but we didn’t know until we overhauled the house.”

Sandoval said the overhaul process takes place after the fire is extinguished.

By removing portions of the roof and attic, firefighters are able to ensure the fire and any smaller fires that may have spread are extinguished.

“We’ll be baby-sitting [the house] the rest of the night to make sure it doesn’t take off again,” Sandoval said. “There will be two firefighters on site until we are positive there is no danger of additional outbreaks.”

Sandoval said the first priority of the department is to ensure the safety of people at the scene, closely followed by property preservation.

Once Carter was safely out of her house, Sandoval said, the department worked quickly to keep the blaze from spreading to other properties and the heavily wooded surrounding area. Firefighters were able to enter the house and begin the overhaul as soon as the fire was suppressed.

Sandoval also said the fire appeared to have started in the wall by a wood burning stove and then spread to the roof.

The fire is still under investigation. Carter was unavailable for comment.