ROCKLAND, Maine — An apartment was heavily damaged Monday night by a cooking fire that spread rapidly.
This was the second significant residential fire in Rockland in the past week. There were no injuries in either fire.
The fire at an apartment on Eliza Steele Drive was reported to the department shortly after 7 p.m. Assistant Fire Chief Mikail Mazzeo said the tenants were preparing to cook fried chicken on the stovetop when the pan caught fire. When the fire and smoke got worse, the family evacuated and called the Fire Department, which is the correct thing to do, the assistant chief said.
The fire spread up the wall. There was fire damage to the kitchen and first floor and smoke damage throughout the apartment. The fire official pointed out, however, that the fire did not spread to the apartments on either side of the one where the fire broke out because of the quality of the construction in the complex.
The apartment will not be inhabitable until repairs are made, Mazzeo said.
Rockport fire personnel went to the Eliza Steele Drive fire. Last week, Rockport also helped Rockland battle a fire on Maverick Street that heavily damaged a house and attached garage.
Mazzeo advised the public that if there is a cooking fire, the best step to take is to smother it. Don’t try to move the pan, don’t use water, and, when you leave the residence, close the door behind you.