Poorly maintained flue accessories have led to a chimney blaze in the state of North Carolina.
The incident transpired in the state's Asheville region, where a woman awoke to see that smoke was circulating throughout her property and managed to successfully leave her home without any injuries, according to CitizenTimes.com.
Buddy Thompson, head of the Asheville-Buncombe Arson Task Force told the website: "This has been a cold winter and people are burning (woodstoves) more than they normally would. (Creosote) builds up. Make sure your chimneys are clean."
This news comes after NVDaily.com reported that a dog was able to rescue a woman from a chimney fire in Virginia, US.
The resident was woken up by her dog's continuous barking at her home in the state's Warren County region this Monday, which enabled her to vacate her house without injury.
Neighbour Mike Russo told the website that he believed a defective wood-burning stove was responsible for the incident.