Homeowners avoid tragedies after stove top fires

Firefighters responded to three weekend incidents, including a stove top fire at this Dogwood Drive home. An alarm system saved one home from major fire damage Sunday in the Corinth community while a second fire in Gaffney snuffed itself out before spreading too far.

In both cases, firefighters linked the fires to unattended stove tops.

The fire in the Corinth community occurred shortly after 11 a.m. Sunday in the 1000 block of Burnt Gin Road. No one was home when an alarm system alerted firefighters to a problem there.

Corinth Volunteer Fire Department Chief Nick Scates said the fire stemmed from a pot on the stove and a dish rag near the pot. Luckily, the fire only claimed the dish rag and caused some smoke damage.

Scates said of the alarm system, “That’s pretty much what saved the house.”

Firefighters were on scene within just a few minutes and a family member who lived nearby was able to let firefighters into the home without having to force entry.

On Sunday afternoon, the City of Gaffney Fire Department was dispatched to the 400 block of Dogwood Drive where another kitchen fire broke out.

Fire Capt. Wayne Brown said the occupant was cooking food before leaving for church and thought she had shut off the stove.

A fire broke out on the stove top and spread into the nearby cabinets and blinds, but apparently choked itself out due to a lack of oxygen. The homeowner discovered the problem when she returned home, opened her door and noticed smoke in her house.

“It must have happened shortly after she left it,” Brown said. “Everything was cool to the touch (when firefighters arrived).”

In addition to the kitchen damage, the fire on Dogwood Drive caused smoke damage throughout the home.

A third kitchen fire occurred Saturday afternoon on Gateway Drive in Gaffney.

Gaffney Fire Department Safety Officer Scott Coleman said the motor in a kitchen exhaust fan malfunctioned and caught fire, damaging the vent hood and the wall behind the stove. Firefighters were able to extinguish the small blaze with fire extinguishers.

No one was injured in any of the three incidents.