By Khalida Sarwari
A family was displaced following a fire at their Montara home Wednesday evening, a battalion chief with the Coastside Fire Protection District said.
The fire was reported around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at a two-story house in the 500 block of Sixth Street.
Two of the home’s occupants called 911 when they returned from a walk at around 7:30 p.m. and found their kitchen engulfed in fire, Battalion Chief Clayton Jolley said.
Crews from several fire agencies responded and found fire blowing out the windows and side of the house and the front door. They confined the fire to the kitchen and attic and brought it under control by 8 p.m.
All three residents, a husband and wife and their 17-year-old daughter, were displaced. The woman was taken to a hospital to receive treatment for minor smoke inhalation.
Jolley said when the woman and her daughter left the house to walk their dog, they left a pot on the stove, which caused the fire. Cooking appliances are the leading cause of residential fires, Jolley said.
“Be really careful when cooking in the kitchen, because that’s where so many fires start,” Jolley said.
He advised residents to invest in products that can control some stove fires. Jolley said a working smoke detector is also essential in preventing home fires, which the family did not have in this case.
The damage of the fire was estimated at $125,000.
The San Mateo County, Point Montara and Pacific fire departments and Cal Fire assisted. The American Cross also provided assistance.