BATON ROUGE - A candle that was left unattended in a River Road area apartment caused a fire that led to $20,000 in damages Monday afternoon.

It was shortly before 3:30 p.m. when residents of Canterbury Square Apartments happened to walk by a unit that appeared to be on fire.

Smoke was coming from the apartment and flames were visible in the window.

The bystanders jumped into action, quickly calling 911 and grabbing a fire extinguisher. With the fire extinguisher in hand, they kicked in the door and put out the flames.

Within minutes, first responders with the Baton Rouge Fire Department arrived and were able to take over.

After confirming that no one was home, officials determined that the blaze was the result of candles were left burning near the window blinds.

Fire officials say no one was injured during the incident. 

According to The People's Burn Foundation, candles cause an estimated 15,600 house fires, 150 deaths, and 1,270 injuries each year.