Kitchen catches fire early Easter morning

Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.

At approximately 2:30 a.m. on April 9, a Monticello household was alerted by smoke detectors to a fire that had started in the kitchen area of their home. Jefferson County Fire Rescue arrived on the scene in minutes to assist.
According to the fire report, Engine 1, Rescue 36, Tanker 1 and 101 responded to the call. The Monticello Police Department and Duke Energy also assisted on the scene.
Dispatch advised that all occupants of the home had already vacated the premises, and upon arrival, the fire rescue team was able to see visible flames and smoke coming from the home from underneath the eve and from attic vents near the peak of the rooftop.
Engine 1 gained access into the home through the backdoor, which was unlocked. They began attacking the flames above the kitchen stove/oven.
When all of the flames within the home had been extinguished, fire response moved outside and began extinguishing flames and embers from the side of the home. The fire crews then began to pull the ceiling in the kitchen, and discovered more flames that had breached the ceiling and had begun to consume the trusses and insulation above the kitchen. The entire kitchen ceiling was pulled and all heat, flame and embers were fully quenched.
To remove smoke from the remainder of the home, a PPV fan was placed at the back door, and vinyl siding was removed from the outside of the structure to enable the fire rescue team to search for any remaining heat. Additionally, the fire crew
walked through the house with a Thermal Imaging Camera (TIC). Through the use of the TIC, it was determined that no excessive heat remained in the home, and by 3:53 a.m., the scene was given the all-clear.
Fire rescue members spoke to the residents of the home, who said that they and their children were sleeping when the smoke detector went off. The children, who were sleeping in the living room next to the kitchen came and awoke the adults, informing them that the alarms were going off. The adults then came into the kitchen, where they discovered the fire and immediately called 911. The residents said they had not done any cooking that night, nor did they have any candles or other heat sources burning in or around the stove.
According to the fire report, an investigation determined that there was an obvious V-shaped pattern coming from the control panel of the stove, extending up to the vent fan and cabinets above. The breaker was not tripped and the oven was still being supplied with power. The cause of the fire was determined to be failure of equipment, with the ignition itself being caused by electrical failure or malfunction, with no fault to the residents, who stated that they had not had any previous problems with the stove.
The kitchen fire lasted just over 20 minutes from the time of the initial alarm to the time the scene was fully secured and cleared by fire rescue. In that short window of time, it caused an estimated $12,000 in damages, even while being contained to a single room in the home.
On their social media, Jefferson County Fire Rescue stated the following:
“The family was alerted by smoke detectors, which were installed Jan. 7 when the Red Cross of the Big Bend partnered with JCFR, Monticello VFD, Rep Allison Tant, Jefferson County Emergency Management and other volunteers to canvass the neighborhood and install smoke detectors. We are certain smoke detectors saved lives last night. If you need smoke detectors installed, please call (850) 342-0182 to arrange installation.”