2 different homes destroyed in cooking fires

BLUFFTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The Bluffton Township Fire District says two homes in the area are destroyed by fires on Friday.

The fire district says a house fire on Wentworth Drive in the Woodbridge subdivision was reported before 9 a.m..

After arriving to the scene, multiple fire stations were able to see smoke and flames coming from the kitchen and attic, a news release states.

The occupants of the home had safely evacuated before crews arrived and no injuries were reported, the fire districts says.

It was determined that the fire was caused by food being left unattended while cooking on the stove, according to the fire district.

The second fire happened around 8:45 p.m. on Cherry Point Road in Okatie, a news release states.

They say EMS and fire crews were called to a medical emergency , initially, but when they arrived to the home they found it fully engulfed in flames.

Neighbors told firefighters that they heard the occupant of the home calling for help, a news release states.

The fire district says firefighters from Station 34 in Sun City found the male resident near the front of the home.

They say the resident was then taken to Savannah Memorial with serious injuries.

The fire district’s Chief, Paul Boulware, was on the scene of the second fire.

“...With the building materials used on today’s homes, fires can quickly consume a home within just a couple of minutes. Smoke alarms and proper fire extinguishers are critical tools that give people time to get to safety, but if they aren’t properly maintained or people don’t know how to use them, residents will quickly be up against very dangerous conditions.” Boulware says.

The National Fire Protection Association says the leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking.

They make the following recommendations for safe cooking:

• Stay in the kitchen while you are frying, boiling, grilling, or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period of time, turn off the stove.
• If you are simmering, baking, or roasting food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you are cooking.
• Keep anything that can catch fire — oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels or curtains — away from your stovetop.
• On the stovetop, smother the flames by sliding a lid over the pan and turning off the burner. Leave the pan covered until it is completely cooled.
• For an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed.
• When a grease fire occurs, the first thing to do, if it is safe, is to put a lid on the pan to deprive the fire of oxygen and turn off the heat source.
• Just get out! When you leave, close the door behind you to help contain the fire.

For more information about home fire safety and resources to help prevent fires you can visit the Bluffton Township Fire District website.

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