BATON ROUGE - Early Thursday morning, one Baton Rouge resident woke up find their room on fire and quickly called emergency personnel for assistance.

According to representatives with the Baton Rouge Fire Department, the fire broke out shortly before 6 a.m. in a home that sits within the 5200 block of Cadillac Street, which is just east of Plank Road.

The person who was awakened by the fire was able to escape safely, but their home was eventually engulfed in flames, firefighters say. Officials have also confirmed that the displaced resident is being assisted by the Red Cross. 

First responders extinguished the blaze before it could spread to nearby houses, and an analysis of the scene revealed that the fire was likely caused by combustible material being placed in close proximity to a space heater.

Fire officials issued the following warning to Baton Rouge residents concerning the use of space heaters, "Now that we are experiencing cooler temperatures, we need to make sure that we are being careful with our heating appliances.

Keep anything that can burn at least three-feet away from heating equipment, like the furnace, fireplace, wood stove, or portable space heater. Remember to turn portable heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed. Have a three-foot “kid-free zone” around open fires and space heaters. Never use your oven to heat your home.

Have a qualified professional install stationary space heating equipment, water heaters or central heating equipment according to the local codes and manufacturer’s instructions."

Click here for more information on space heater safety from the U.S. Fire Administration and FEMA.