Six residents of an Edgewood home have been displaced by a fire that started in the kitchen Tuesday night, according to the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
Gregg and Veronica Johnson, plus their four adult children, lived in the house in the 100 block of Palmetto Drive. The American Red Cross is providing assistance to them, according to a notice of investigation issued Wednesday morning.
The fire started in the kitchen because food was left unattended on the stove, according to the report. It caused an estimated $70,000 in damage to the house and another $10,000 in damage to its contents.
No injuries were reported, and 60 firefighters from the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Abingdon, Bel Air and Joppa-Magnolia fire companies responded. It took them about 30 minutes to get the fire under control.
Firefighters were alerted shortly after 10 p.m., according to the report.
Senior Deputy State Fire Marshal Oliver Alkire, a spokesperson for the Fire Marshal's Office, said kitchen fires are "one of the more common investigations across the state that we handle."
"Keep anything that can catch fire – oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels – away from the stove top" when cooking, Alkire said.
Alkire said people should stay in the kitchen when frying food, and they should use a pot lid or fire extinguisher if they feel like they can control a blaze.
If not, people should get out of the kitchen, close the door and call 911, he said.