A Union couple who lost everything to a Christmas Day fire is receiving some help getting back on their feet from the American Red Cross.

Mack Lipscomb Jr. and Delores Savage were left homeless after a fire gutted their home at 114 Carson St. late Friday night. Union Public Safety Department Fire Division Commander Larry Robinson said Lipscomb told firefighters he’d been asleep in his living room when he woke up to find the room on fire, forcing him to flee the building.

The Union, Monarch and Southside fire departments were dispatched to the scene around 9:30 p.m. Robinson said when firefighters arrived they found flames shooting out the side window from the living room. Firefighters were on scene for more than three hours battling the blaze which Robinson said left the building uninhabitable without a great deal of repair.

Public Safety Director Sam White said Monday the cause of the fire is still undetermined but could have been electrical in nature. White said investigators suspect the fire was electrical due to the presence of several power strips in the living room which had multiple appliances plugged into them. He said it is possible the power strips became overloaded causing the fire.

While no one was injured in the blaze, White said damage to the structure was estimated at $20,000 with another $18,000 worth of damage to the building’s contents.

“They lost everything,” said Carol Willis, Union Service Center Manager for the Piedmont Chapter of the American Red Cross, on Monday morning. “What wasn’t lost to the fire was lost to smoke damage.”

Willis said the Red Cross is assisting the couple by putting them up at a local motel for four days while they look for a new residence. She said the Red Cross will also provide them with clothing, food and some housing assistance. If Lipscomb and Savage find a new place to live, Willis said the Red Cross will help them with the first month’s rent.

The funds to assist the couple come from local donations by Union County residents. Willis said all money donated to the Red Cross in Union County is used to assist local residents in need of help.

Anyone wanting to make a donation to the Red Cross should send their donations to: Union Red Cross, Attn. Carol Willis, P.O. Box 1108, Union, SC 29379.