COOKING FIRE DAMAGES EL CAJON APARTMENT

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October 9, 2014 (El Cajon)—Cooking is the leading cause of home fires in the U.S.  Tuesday, a fire caused by unattended cooking displaced a family of five and caused $100,000 in damage to an apartment in El Cajon. It is considered a total loss.

Heartland Fire & Rescue, with assistance from CAL FIRE, received a 9-1-1 call reporting the structure fire at 351 South Lincoln Avenue in El Cajon at 1:20 p.m.  Fire crews arriving on scene found smoke coming from the door and windows of a lower apartment unit of the two-story structure, the Lincoln Twenty-Five Apartments.

About 15 firefighters had the fire knocked down in less than 20 minutes. The fire was contained to one apartment unit, but adjacent units did sustain smoke damage.  Two adults and three children lived in the apartment.  The two adults were home at the time of the fire and were able to escape; the children were in school.

The displaced family of five is now being assisted by the American Red Cross.

The National Fire Prevention Association and Heartland Fire & Rescue remind the public to never leave cooking food unattended. 

In 2011, the last year for which data is available, U.S. fire departments responded to 370,000 home structure fires. These fires caused 13,910 civilian injuries, 2,520 deaths, and $6.9 billion in direct damage.

More home fires are caused by cooking than anything else, followed by heating equipment. Two out of every five home fires started in the kitchen and unattended cooking was a factor in 34% of home cooking fires reported.

Two-thirds of those home cooking fires started when food or other cooking materials caught fire, and most occurred on a range or stove, with ovens accounting for only 16%. Microwave ovens are also a major cause of burn injuries due to scalding. Children under five face a higher risk of scalding than being burned in a cooking fire.

Also remember to test your smoke alarm and replace the batteries, since early warnings can save lives.

 


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