Rochester Fire Dept. responds to cooking fire, reminding public about kitchen safety

(ABC 6 News) – The Rochester Fire Dept. responded to a structure fire Saturday evening and is now reminding the public about cooking and kitchen safety.

According to RFD’s Isaac Molin, it happened around 5:09 p.m. on the 2000 block of 30th Ave NW.

Once on scene, firefighters found light smoke coming from the structure and that an evacuation had taken place.

Responding firefighters confirmed that a resident put out a cooking fire using a fire extinguisher. Smoldering debris was then removed from the residence and RFD used fans to clear out the smoke from the building.

There is no estimate on the damage that was caused and no one was injured during the fire.

According to RFD, the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s office reported that the leading cause of structure fires was cooking last year, causing an estimated $6 million in damage.

RFD also says that the top two factors causing those fires were unattended equipment and combustibles that were kept too close to a heat source.

If a cooking fire does start, never use water to put it out as it will cause grease fires to spread or explode. Instead, RFD advises you to use an ABC extinguisher, smother the fire (which can be done by sliding a tight-fitting lid on the pan), or turn off the heat source.