fire the day before the inspectors were coming to check the fire alarms
By winterose
@winterose (39887)
Canada
February 22, 2013 1:21am CST
Call it ironic, I had a dish towel hanging above the stove, and my cat pulled it down onto the burners. The trouble is I was heating a soup. What I didn't know was that I turned the wrong burner on.
So I am in the living room watching TV and I see flames coming from my kitchen. I saw them through the window. I run into the kitchen and the dish towel is on fire on the burner I turned on by mistake. I tried throwing salt on it but the flames were not going down so I throw the towel in the sink and doused it with water.
To this I could have had a big kitchen fire the night before the city inspectors were coming to check all the fire alarms in the building and in people's apartments.
Any thoughts?
4 people like this
18 responses
@extremefun4fun (2908)
• India
23 Feb 13
we should be so much careful about these sort of thing specially if a naughty pet is there and live in an apartment which is making responsibility much more than any other side. for me it has happend that while of cooking I did not notice that my dish towel which was near fire has burnt and for that it burnt my finger but I already was there and I put that in the water.
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
I was there too, just in the next room, so I put it out right away.
@yanzalong (19091)
• Indonesia
22 Feb 13
This could happen to anyone working in kitchen. My wife several times forgot to turn off the burner. She just left home with the burner on and came back home to see that the burner was still on. Luckily nothing bad happened.
If I was with her every time she cooked, I always reminded her of the stove she used. Just to make sure that all the burners were off when we left home.
2 people like this
@Lindalinda (4111)
• Canada
22 Feb 13
Well good thing you were able to throw the towel in the sink. Kitchen fires are not fun.You are so lucke all ended well. i have also turned on the wrong burner on occasion. Now I have a rule that nothing is left on top of the stove. I used to let the washed pots sit on top of the stove to dry out completely before putting them away. I don't do that anymore. I also don't leave any spoons, other dishes, oven mitts or towels on the stove when it is turned off.
2 people like this
@dpk262006 (58679)
• Delhi, India
22 Feb 13
May be your cat who was in the kitchen needed to be blamed ........ lol!
Else, you could blame yourself and could feel guilty for the mishap ...... lol!
Once my better half also did a similar act. She switched on the water heating rod when there was no water in the bucked and red hot rod melted the plasitc of the bucket.
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
I blame it on getting old lol, good thing your better half didn't set the house on fire either.
@sid556 (30953)
• United States
22 Feb 13
Yikes. Now that is Murphy's Law. I have so so many fire stories...could write a book but I'm sure you have seen them on here over time so I won't repeat. I'm just glad that you discovered it and took care of it before someone got hurt or befor all your neighbors kew.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
yeah and a day before the inspectors were coming to check the fire alarms isn't that crazy.
@CookingIsMyPassion (653)
• United States
22 Feb 13
Accidents do happen and cats always seem to find the strangest things attractive to them.
One thing you seem to be missing is the inspection aspect. Did anyone check the batteries in the alarms? Are the alarms hard-wired? If so, are all the wires connected and not loose?
The biggest issue after taking care of the obvious is why didn't the alarm go off when the flames were shooting up? Why didn't it go off when the smoke started to waft in the air from the burning towel?
Hope you don't get fined for faulty fire alarms from the fire marshal or city inspector if they aren't working properly. If you have time it might be a good idea to check them out before they show up at your front door.
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
the alarms were working fine they checked them the next day, I had the kitchen stove fan on and that must be what kept the smoke down, but I did catch the fire immediately which helped as well.
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
the alarms were working but it didn't set them off so that was great.
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
it was on the other side of the wall and the cat clawed it and must have dragged it.
@celticeagle (189957)
• Boise, Idaho
22 Feb 13
I don't have my towels anywhere near the stove. They usually are folded over the side of the sink. Or around the knobee. I had such a fire years ago now and I never put another towel close to the stove.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
mine is actually on an adjoining wall but the cat must of clawed it then dragged it
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (189957)
• Boise, Idaho
23 Feb 13
The little Imp! Funny how you are rarely on here for long and yet your number is larger than mine.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
24 Feb 13
I have to say that I'm really glad to hear that you were able to catch this and get the fire out before it was something that could have been a lot more dangerous than what you had to deal with. I don't really think that your cat's accident happened just because of the fact that they were going to be inspecting the fire alarms in the building.
All of that said, I know that you are terribly lucky that you did see the flames before any more damage had occurred.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
27 Feb 13
no I was saying it was ironic that it happened just before the fire inspection.
@changjiangzhibin89 (17243)
• China
22 Feb 13
It was really a near thing.You never thought the "naughty" cat would put the dish towel down onto the burners on which you turned.You were not so much in danger as scared anyway.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
if I was in a room where I didn't see the fire started I could have burned down the kitchen. The fire alarm in the building would turn on and the firemen would be at our door.
@changjiangzhibin89 (17243)
• China
1 Mar 13
It's lucky you were well out of fire.It sounds like you have taken good measure to prevent fires in your building.
@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
23 Feb 13
Well it's a good thing you were where you were and not in your room. You could have had a bad fire. Things like that happen when you have a cat. They are always playing with something or investigating something. In glad he wasn't hurt too.
1 person likes this
@blackrusty (3519)
• Mexico
22 Feb 13
you are so lucky it could have been alot worse then what it was glad your ok and you only lost a dish towel
@Thoroughrob (11742)
• United States
22 Feb 13
I am so glad you caught it before it had spread out of control. It could really have been bad. I am glad that it is all ok, and you are safe.
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51838)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
22 Feb 13
Glad you didn't burn down the house...
I guess you'll be extra careful about making sure you turn on the correct burner. And it's a good idea to not hang any flamables above the stove.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
the towel is on the other wall but he jumped up on the freezer and pulled it and it landed on the stove.
1 person likes this
@koopharper (7599)
• Canada
22 Feb 13
Glad you were able to put that out before it got out of control. Bad cat. Things happen. Thankfully it wasn't any worse than that.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
23 Feb 13
yep I am glad but I got to be careful about putting the right burner on, I have done it before.
