KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Lights on a Christmas tree caused house a fire Friday morning in the 6000 block of East 100th Street, firefighters said.

No one was home at the time.

"I feel horrible. My kids don't have anything -- nothing at all. Everything was in that house," said LaShawna Carter, who lived in the home with her three children, ages 5, 3, and 2.

Firefighters said the tree was in a corner and the fire spread to a couch.

"This actually was an artificial Christmas tree, but the lights are still the same. They're real inexpensive lights and people tend to keep them year after year," battalion chief Kevin Cochran said.

Cochran recommended buying new Christmas tree lights every couple of years. He said homeowners should never leave them on when no one is home.