A house at the corner of Erie Avenue and School Street in Narrowsburg was totally destroyed by a fire that broke out near 11 p.m. 

Long-time Narrowsburg resident Kathy Michell said she heard the fire alarm and went out to check, and within 15 minutes the old wooden structure with two apartments was fully engulfed. The fire started in the front of the house, and quickly spread to the rear.

Michell said a couple had rented the downstairs apartment only a week or so ago from the owner. The house is owned by Jim Graham, and the couple renting the apartment is Ron O'Dell and Samatha Little. When Michell arrived on the scene the couple was in the street, with Little in bare feet and O'Dell in socks. Michell said she was able to get them some footwear from her home.

The couple was distraught as they had to leave a dog inside the inferno in a crate, and also, according to a social media post, about nine cats.

The couple said several times that the cause of the fire was linked to a candle.

The Narrowsburg Fire Department arrived on the scene about ten minutes after the alarm, but by the time they were able to get water onto the structure, it was too late to save it.

The fire was hot enough to melt the siding of the house next door. 

A post from Little on a social media site said, in part, "We lost every single thing in that house including our pets. They were our children. It was a freak accident and I wish every single second that it never happened. I'm devastated. It was caused by a candle. A simple stupid green candle. We went back in to grab lucky and the cats and I grabbed one cat that was on fire and she dissolved in my hands. You have no idea how painful that is. When I turned around to get lucky the fire was behind me. We ran back outside gasping for air and opened the bedroom window trying to climb in to get lucky that way and left the kitchen door open calling for the cats. The smoke was too thick and the fire was so fast we couldn't do anything. We were screaming for help and begging God to stop it all."