After Erie house nearly burns down, Colorado fire officials share word of warning about "warm weather flora"

Fire officials in Colorado shared a word of warning on Monday after a house nearly burned down in Erie over the weekend in cold temperatures.  

Mountain View Fire Rescue says firefighters were called to the house on Daily Drive Saturday night after a warming system for an avocado tree caught fire just outside the building and the flames spread to the structure.

Residents of the home and neighbors threw buckets of water on the flames before fire crews arrived, which Mountain View says helped keep the fire from doing too much damage. Fire crews from Mountain View and Lafayette then extinguished the fire after arriving.

An investigation into the fire stated it wasn't clear whether the fire started because of some sort of problem with the warming system or possibly by holiday lights. The official cause was therefore declared undetermined.

On Monday Mountain View Fire Rescue advised on social media that people who want to have plants from warmer climates -- what they call "warm weather flora" -- on their property outside should consider putting them in some sort of container "that can be rolled into a garage when frigid temperatures move into an area."