'Watch what you heat' warns Charlottetown Fire Dept. after kitchen fires

Charlottetown's fire department is asking city residents to "watch what you heat" after attending three cooking fires Monday.

Fire trucks were sent to two fire alarmsover the lunch hour Monday and one at suppertime.

"It is very odd for us to run three in a day, and basically three in a row two at one time actually," said Winston Bryan, fire inspector and investigator for Charlottetown.

No one was hurt and no property was seriously damaged in the fires, which were mostly pots that had boiled dry and caused thick smoke to trip alarms, Bryan said.

Firefighters ventilatedthe buildings with pressure fans, expelling smoke through a window or another door to remove contaminants, he explained.

'Uh oh, I forgot the beans'

The department usually attends about two cooking fires a week, he noted.

Bryan would like people to remain in the kitchen while they are cooking, and use temperature-controlled appliances such as deep fryers instead of hot oil in a pot on the stove.

"Watch what you heat," he reminded.People forget they have pots on the stove andleave the room to watch the news,fall asleep or leave home, he said.

"Next thing you know they come home and there's a nice red truck in front of their building Uh oh, I forgot the beans," he said.

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