A fire gutted a Campustown house early Tuesday morning, injuring two students and forcing the other six occupants to evacuate.

The fire, which started about 5:45 a.m. on the first floor of 1006 S. Oak St. in Champaign, was started by candles left unattended with no holder in the first-floor living room, according to a Champaign fire department report. Hot wax from the candles dripped onto books and papers, setting them on fire. The fire then spread up curtains to the second floor of the house.

Residents Jaclyn Carey and Mike Byrne were injured when they jumped from the second story window of the house to escape the fire. Carey fractured two of her vertebrae, and Byrne suffered a broken wrist, said Monica Carey, Jaclyn’s sister and senior in Applied Life Studies. Both Jaclyn Carey and Byrne were taken to Carle Foundation Hospital, 210 E. University Ave., and remained hospitalized Tuesday night. Roland Realty Inc., which owns the house, provided the other six residents with a new house to stay in, Monica Carey said.

According to the fire report, three firefighters were also injured slightly while fighting the fire – two suffered minimal burns, and another injured his shoulder.

The entire front and left side of the residence was left charred. Vinyl siding on the apartment building next door was warped from the heat of the flames.

Monica Carey said she was sleeping in her bedroom when she heard a loud bang on the second floor. When she went up the stairs to investigate, “everything was filled with smoke,” she said.

After she ran outside, Monica Carey said she turned to look at her home.

“(The fire) engulfed the whole house,” she said.

Carey said she was in “total shock” Tuesday.

“You don’t think it’s going to happen, but … ” she said.