A fire sparked by an altar candle at a Garden Grove Buddhist temple was doused early Wednesday, but not before the blaze caused about $450,000 in damage.
No injuries were reported.
The two-alarm blaze was reported around 11:40 p.m. Tuesday at the Chua Vinh Minh temple in the 12200 block of Magnolia Street, according to Capt. Thahn Nguyen of the Garden Grove Fire Department.
A religious leader who was asleep inside a garage converted to a living area was alerted to the fire by a neighbor, NBC4 reported.
“The neighbor came and knocked on the door and they said `fire,’ and when she (the religious leader) woke up, the fire was inside,” Mike Nguyen, a temple member, told NBC4.
Fire officials said two women escaped from the Temple before fire crews arrived, thanks to the neighbor’s warning and a working smoke alarm in the building.
It took 32 firefighters 32 minutes to get the fire under control, Nguyen said. Damage was estimated at $450,000.
Fire officials said the fire was determined to be accidental, caused by a burning candle on an altar.