PARKERSBURG - An early-morning fire Friday at Chateau Hills Apartments led to one man being hospitalized.
Chris Sams, fire chief of the Blennerhassett Volunteer Fire Department, said units were called to a burning apartment shortly before 2 a.m. Friday.
Sams said a resident was attempting to cook when a pan of oil caught on fire. He covered the oil and thought the fire was out.
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An early-morning fire Friday at Chateau Hills Apartments sent one man to the hospital. The fire occurred when cooking oil ignited and was spilled. (Photo by Michael Erb)
"A few minutes later they noticed smoke coming from the kitchen," Sams said. "When they were trying to carry it outside, it spilled," setting the apartment on fire.
Sams said units from Blennerhassett, Mineral Wells, Lubeck and Washington Bottom volunteer fire departments responded to the scene. Sams said the fire was extinguished in 10-15 minutes, but caused heavy damage to the apartment and water damage to the apartment below.
One man in the residence was splashed with oil and caught fire, Sams said. He was taken to Camden Clark Medical Center with "non-life-threatening" injuries, according to paramedics on scene, Sams said. The man's name and condition were unavailable Friday.
Sams said all four fire departments are automatically sent out anytime there is a fire in their response areas.
"In my opinion, they did a really good job of getting that fire knocked down quickly," he said. "There were people on scene about 7-8 minutes after the call went out."
