A man put out a blaze in his east Vancouver home’s kitchen cabinets with a garden hose after they caught fire Thursday afternoon, but the fire did enough damage to displace the family of eight living there.
The Vancouver Fire Department was called to the house, in the 600 block of Northeast 132nd Avenue in the Fircrest neighborhood, shortly before 11:45 a.m.
Department spokesman Kevin Stromberg said firefighters arrived a few minutes after the call, and saw smoke coming from the front door of a two-story home.
Two adults and a child had fled the house, he said, and let firefighters know everyone was out.
One of the adults said he was in his garage when he heard a popping sound coming from the electrical box.
He went inside the house, Stromberg said, and found his kitchen cabinets were on fire. The man then went to grab a hose from his backyard and was able to douse the flames before firefighters arrived.
He did a pretty thorough job, Stromberg said.
“We just checked for any extension around the kitchen, and didn’t find any,” he said.
The house is home to two adults and six children, Stromberg said. The damage was extensive enough they wouldn’t be able to stay overnight, he said.
The Red Cross responded to help with emergency lodging and other needs.
The Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Office was investigating the fire.
