Tuesday 9 November
18.04 Filton Avenue, Horfield, Bristol
Firefighters have praised the occupants of a Bristol house, who
followed the best safety advice when they discovered a kitchen
fire.
Four people were in the three-storey house when
unattended food left cooking under the grill caught fire. A
woman in her 20s who discovered the fire immediately alerted the
three other people in the house, closed the kitchen door, left the
property and called 999.
Two fire engines, one from Southmead and one from Patchway fire
stations, responded to the emergency. Firefighters wearing
breathing apparatus entered the heavily smoke logged kitchen and
used a CO2 extinguisher to deal with the small fire.
The blaze caused only minor damage to the oven and smoke logging
to the kitchen.
The Officer-in-Charge of the incident praised the actions of the
woman who found the fire. "She did all the right things. Instead of
trying to fight the fire herself, she made sure everyone got out
safely, closed the door of the kitchen and called for our
help."
Fires that start in the kitchen account for more than half of
all accidental house fires attended by Avon Fire &
Rescue Service crews. Many fires start when cooking
is left unattended on hobs or under the grill. If you have to
leave the room, even for a short time, switch off the
power and move cooking from the heat.
For more information see our leaflet on Kitchen Safety (PDF 175kb, opens in new
window).