The Vancouver Fire Marshal is praising a pair of Harney Heights residents for doing “everything right” when a fire broke out while they were cooking Monday evening.
Two adults were cooking around 6:45 p.m. Monday at 3100 E. McLoughlin Blvd., when some oil on the stove reached ignition temperatures, starting a fire that crawled up to the cabinets, Vancouver Fire Marshal Heidi Scarpelli said.
One adult used a fire extinguisher to try to quell the flames while another called 911, Scarpelli said.
“We couldn’t ask for a better response,” Scarpelli said.
Unfortunately, Scarpelli said, the fire extinguisher was small and ran out of powder agent.
Firefighters arrived and quickly extinguished the fire. Crews stayed on scene for another 45 minutes working to ventilate the smoke from the residence. No one was hurt.
Those at the residence were displaced and they received assistance from the American Red Cross. Scarpelli said the damage to the structure and contents was an estimated $19,500.
“Luckily they did everything right or they could have lost their entire home,” Scarpelli said. “This just shows you how quickly fires can happen, especially when you’re heating cooking oils.”
