For the second time this year, La Grange Park firefighters have responded to an apartment fire in an apartment complex on the 1600 block of Forest Avenue.
The automatic alarm was activated at 8:58 p.m., July 20. While firefighters were notified that there was a couch on fire, it turned out that the blaze had started in the kitchen, just like an earlier fire in January.
The resident was heating a household cleaner in a pot on the stove when it overheated to the point of ignition.
“We were told she was trying to make the place smell better,” Fire Chief Dean Maggos said.
The resident removed the pot from the stove, bumped into a wall, splashed the flame on the floor and wall, burned herself, and dropped the pot on a futon, which caught on fire.
The woman was treated for burns by department paramedics, and transported to Loyola Hospital by paramedics. Two additional minors in the apartment were evaluated for smoke inhalation by department paramedics but did not require hospital services.
Damages to the apartment were estimated at $1,000. The La Grange Fire Department assisted in the response.
Only two hours after the incident on Forest Road, the Department responded to another oven fire on the 700 block of Stone Avenue.
In this incident, an oven was on fire, but the fire was contained before spreading and the house only needed to be ventilated.
“Cooking fires are a continuous problem,” Maggos said. “That’s been a theme for a few years. You’ve got to pay attention while you’re cooking and not leave stuff cooking on the stove. People need to pay attention when they’re heating anything on a stovetop.”
Hank Beckman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
More Top Picks Best Text To Speech Devices For Dyslexia