Smoke detectors sounded and alerted two Columbia residents to a small fire in their townhouse early Sunday morning, according to the Howard County fire service.
Smoke was coming from the front of the house, in the 10300 block of College Square, when firefighters arrived around 7 a.m., a spokesman for the fire department said in a statement.
The cause of the fire, which did an estimated $50,000 in damage, remains under investigation.
There were no injuries and the Red Cross was called to assist the residents with housing.