I hadn't thought about newspaper, since I don't get them at home, and having used them as kindling, they don't seem useful for this situation. Thanks for the heads up on the matches.

There's no caretaker; I live in a small (4 unit) building that's all condos. I don't know if the neighbors have any particular skill with this, but if someone's around tonight, I might try to get one of them to come down with me, just in case.