Another Escambia Residential Fire

January 1, 2010

Another residential fire has added another red bulb in Escambia County Fire Rescue’s “Keep the Wreath Green” holiday fire safety campaign.

Just after 3:00 Thursday afternoon, a fire was reported in the 6300 block of Antietam Drive in Pensacola. When firefighters arrived, they found a fire in the kitchen and attic of the home. The fire caused major damage to the kitchen and attic, and smoke and heat damage to the rest of the home. An elderly female, who sustained minor injuries, was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital by Escambia County Emergency Medical Services. The cause of the fire was determined to have been from an item being cooked on the stove. The American Red Cross was called in to assist the family of two.

All 12 red bulbs lit so far in the wreath campaign have been for residential fires south of Nine Mile Road. No serious residential fires have been reported in North Escambia this December.

Escambia Fire Rescue offers the following seasonal fire safety tips related to cooking:

  • The leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking.
  • Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, 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, roasting, or boiling food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you’re cooking.
  • Stay alert! To prevent cooking fires, you have to be alert. You won’t be if you are sleepy, have been drinking alcohol, or have taken medicine that makes you drowsy.
  • Keep anything that can catch fire – potholders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper or plastic bags, food packaging, towels, or curtains – away from your stovetop.
  • Keep the stovetop, burners, and oven clean.
  • Keep pets off cooking surfaces and nearby countertops to prevent them from knocking things onto the burner.
  • Wear short, close-fitting or tightly rolled sleeves when cooking. Loose clothing can dangle onto stove burners and catch fire if it comes into contact with a gas flame or electric burner.

Comments

2 Responses to “Another Escambia Residential Fire”

  1. A. Davis on January 4th, 2010 8:10 pm

    I think the worst is after a fire you have to deal with people coming to your home to see what they can take, It is so sad when people do not have enough respect for peoples things to leave what little might be saved. I had a neighbor whos home burned and people would go and try to get what they could after reporting that people was in her home on her property the police said that it was abandoned nothing could be done. That was not true it was just their choice that day. I do know that we watched the statefire marshell put crime tape every place he could on the property and explain to a deputy it was his crime scene and told him that the person who owned the property felt threatened by unknown people and would protect theirselves in anyway felt justified and that the officer should warn the people that he had let off about the problem. The Firemarshells office have great people working for them and do a great job at protecting fire victims rights when others will not.

  2. char on January 1st, 2010 8:29 am

    I wish they would print the address of these fires, so that ppl could go
    take food to them, and see if they need anything.
    I suppose their neighbors are helping, but you can’t get to much help
    after something like this.
    It does say the 6300 block so I guess we can go take a look and see
    if we see it and can help in some way.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News