London Fire Department crews are reminding residents to keep an eye on their cooking after two kitchen fires in less than 12 hours caused a total of $57,500 in damages and sent two people to hospital with non-life-threatening burns.
The first fire occurred just after 5 p.m. Thursday on Riverside Drive and resulted in $7,500 in damages. The second occurred just after 4 a.m. Friday on Simcoe Street, causing $50,000 in damages.
“There was a fair amount of fire in the cupboard area. The first arriving crew did a good job in knocking it down, almost right away. After that, it was just cleaning up, and salvaging
Fortunately, in both instances, working smoke alarms were in place.
So far this year, officials say 40 per cent of residential fires in London were cooking-related.
“Distracted cooking is a major cause of concern for us,” says Deputy Chief of Fire Prevention Gary Bridge.
“Cooking fires were a strong focus during Fire Prevention Week which was less than a week ago. These types of fires can easily be prevented if people would simply stay focused on their cooking.”
Deputy Chief Bridge adds that the safest way to deal with a small fire in a pot or pan on the stove is to put a lid on it to smother the flames.
Meantime, crews were called to a fire around 10 a.m. Friday in Dorchester at a condo on Fox Hollow Drive. Damage is said to be extensive though an estimate is not yet available. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Source: Distracted Cooking To Blame For Simcoe Street, Riverside Drive Fires | (CFPL AM) AM 980
