Child with lighter triggers trailer fire

Fire crews put out a blaze that temporarily hospitalized two small children with smoke inhalation.

Two children were treated and released for smoke inhalation following a fire Tuesday night in a trailer home at 475 E. 4th South St.

The fire apparently began with a three-year-old playing with a lighter in a bedroom. He and his six-year-old brother were alone in the trailer at the time, although a relative watching them was just outside the home when the fire started.

Fire crews were called out at 6:24 p.m. They rescued the two children from the burning structure but the trailer itself was a total loss. Damage was estimated at $3,000.

The children were treated at Elmore Medical Center for what Fire Chief Phil Gridley Jr. described as "a lot of smoke."

Firemen used their burnout fund to help the family find temporary housing in a local hotel and acquire some clothes for them. The Red Cross has been contacted to provide additional help.

The names of the victims and the family were not immediately released.