Hibbing house fire caused by child

A house in Hibbing caught fire and sustained an estimated $10,000 in damage Tuesday evening when an unsupervised child used a lighter to set a piece of paper on fire.
The Hibbing Fire Department said it responded to the call at 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, a short time after the preschool-aged child is alleged to have inadvertently set the family’s playroom ablaze. Authorities say the fire was quickly extinguished and no one was hurt.
The child, who later admitted to starting the fire, was playing with arts and crafts materials inside the house that evening. One of the child’s parents was home at the time, according to authorities, but the parent was in the garage and didn’t return to the house until the playroom had begun to smoke.
The exact cause of the fire still is being investigated, but authorities said they currently have no reason to question the child’s account.
Hibbing firefighters referred the family - two adults and two children - to Hibbing’s Youth Fire Setters program for assistance.