Andreas Jeninga/The Hoya Residents of Village C East watch as firefighters attempt to extinguish the flames and smoke engulfing the eighth floor room. Students living on that floor were not allowed back to their rooms until 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

A candle burning too close to curtains is being blamed for a fire on the eighth floor of Village C East on Tuesday morning. No students were injured in the fire, which occurred around 2:30 a.m.

Nearly 250 residents of Village C East and 500 residents of Village C West were forced outside until 4 a.m. while fire crews worked to extinguish the blaze. Residents of the eighth floor of Village C East were displaced until 4 p.m. the following afternoon.

District of Columbia Fire and EMS Department spokesman Allan Etter said that the fire, which remained confined to the room, was caused by a candle left burning next to papers and window curtains when the student living in the room was not present. The fire and arson investigation unit deemed the fire accidental.

Village C East residents identified the room occupant as Jennifer Fisher ( COL ’05). Damages to the room have rendered it uninhabitable and the fire department estimated the damage at $5,000.

George White (COL ’05), a resident of the seventh floor in Village C East, said he pulled the fire alarm after smelling smoke and seeing flames coming out of a window on the eighth floor. When he went to the eighth floor to find the fire and make sure the room wasn’t occupied, he found black smoke coming from the door.

Although White did not hear any sort of smoke detector, university spokeswoman Laura Cavender confirmed that the detector did go off in the room where the fire originated.

“There is no indication that any of the fire alarm, smoke alarm or sprinkler systems in the building malfunctioned in any way during the fire,” Cavender said.

Eighth floor resident Luis Torres ( COL ’05), who lives next door to the Fisher’s room, said that the fire alarm that was pulled was only a soft humming.

“It was just making a quiet buzzing sound. I opened the window and that’s when I saw smoke coming out.” he said. “I’m concerned that if I had been asleep I would not have heard it.”

The fire department broke through the windows at the end of the building’s eighth floor hallway and entered the hall using their ladders.

The university is in the process of replacing the hall windows and the windows of the room in which the fire originated, according to an e-mail sent to eighth-floor residents. Additionally, the Residence Life staff held a meeting on Tuesday afternoon to answer questions and reiterate safety measures for the residents of Village C East.

According to Etter, it is common for fires to be caused by carelessness on college campuses, especially during the beginning weeks of school. He cited cooking, smoking and arson as the top three causes of fires on campuses and also stressed the fact that alcohol is a major factor. It is unknown whether alcohol played a part in Tuesday’s fire.

Fisher could not be reached for comment.

– Hoya staff writer Nick Timiraos contributed to this report