(Photo by Randy M. Cauthron) Members of the Spencer Fire Department were called at about 10:43 p.m. Monday, June 30, to this location at 503 West Sixth Street. The fire claimed the life of 47-year-old Karen Lynn Colding of Spencer, who was living in the east, first-floor apartment with her father. The cause of the fire has been ruled accidental. [Order this photo]

Investigators are still looking into the circumstances that led to the death of a 47-year-old Spencer woman who was trapped in her bedroom by a fire late Monday night.

The fire, at 503 West Sixth Street, likely claimed the life of Karen Lynn Colding -- investigators have requested an autopsy as part of a routine procedure to rule out other causes of death around the time of the fire.

Firefighters arrived at about 10:43 p.m. Monday and saw heavy fire coming out of the front of the apartment building. After hearing of a potential occupant inside, they went through severe heat and fire to locate Colding on the first floor in an east apartment. She lived there with her father, Frank Stewart, who was home and able to escape, according to Spencer Fire Chief Doug Duncan.

A joint investigation by Spencer's police and fire departments, as well as the Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office attributes the start of the fire to an improperly discarded smoking material, which ignited a sofa in the living room.

"The fire was between her and the door," Duncan said. "The other thing, of course is that she was in bed asleep. It was moving pretty quick."

The blaze also left tenants at the three-apartment complex without a place to stay. Spencer Fire Chief Doug Duncan thinks a large majority of the personal belongings in the apartments will be unsalvageable. No one has been able to reenter the apartment complex. Damage is estimated at $70,000.

No other injuries were reported.

Members of the Spencer Fire Department remained on scene until about 3:37 a.m. The estimated 28 firefighters were assisted at the scene by the Spencer Police Department, Spencer Hospital Ambulance, Spencer Municipal Utilities, Aquila, the Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office and Iowa Great Lakes Chapter of the American Red Cross.

"We ended up back out there about about 6 or 6:30 this morning," Duncan said, on Tuesday. "We had some insulation burning, so we had to spend another hour-and-a-half or so getting that put out."

Duncan could not confirm the presence of smoke detectors, saying: "There's so much damage, we couldn't find them and we can't swear that we heard them."

Duncan spoke with longtime members of the fire department and thinks more than 30 years have passed since the city's last fire-related fatality.

HOW TO HELP

After assisting the three families at 503 West Sixth Street find places to stay early Tuesday morning, Director Bill Campbell of the Iowa Great Lakes Chapter of the American Red Cross said there is a need for furniture-related items to get the families back on their feet.

Items such as chairs, sofas, TV's, tables and other household items would be of tremendous assistance. Anyone with items that could be donated can call the Iowa Great Lakes Chapter of the American Red Cross at (712) 262-1574. Simply leave a message after hours and someone from the organization will return the call.