Unattended stove sparks structure fire

SANDPOINT — A woman who left her stove unattended while cooking caused a structure fire at the Oak Street Apartments on Monday morning.

There were no injuries.

Sandpoint Fire Chief Robert Tyler said the upstairs apartment’s occupant was cooking bacon when she got distracted and left the stove. The bacon caught fire and the flames began to spread.

“There had been quite a kitchen fire. She threw a bunch of baking soda on it and got the fire out in the kitchen, but it had already extended into the attic,” said Tyler.

Occupants of an apartment next door suspected their furnace was on fire when they saw smoke coming from a closet where the appliance was installed.

“They could hear the crackling up above and called 911,” Tyler said.

Firefighters from Sandpoint and Sagle, which automatically respond to structure fires simultaneously because of an automatic-aid agreement, got the call shortly after 9 a.m.

“They made a hell of a stop. The fire was basically confined to the attic area,” he said. “The fire was out relatively quickly, but it took a while for all the mop-up and clean-up, and checking the extension in the attic.”

Tyler estimated the apartment complex west of Division Avenue sustained about $200,000 of damage. The apartment complex is insured, although Tyler doubted that the occupants of the two apartments had renter’s insurance.

Other adjacent apartments were evacuated on Monday as a safety precaution, but Tyler anticipates their residents will be able return home today.

The identity of the 43-year-old woman who was cooking when the fire broke out was not disclosed.