Lafayette, LA - At 3:53p.m. Friday, 06/16/2023, Lafayette Firefighters responded to an apartment fire at Stonegate Apartment Homes on Birch Drive.
Firefighters entered the complex and noticed heavy smoke coming from an upstairs apartment.
Emergency crews accessed the apartment and located the fire in the kitchen. The fire was extinguished within 10 minutes.
The apartment sustained major fire damage. the adjacent upstairs apartments sustained minor smoke damage and the unit below sustained smoke and water damage.
The occupants in the unit where the fire originated and in the unit below them were displaced.
No one was at home at the time of the fire. The occupant indicated she was frying food in the kitchen prior to leaving. No injuries were reported.
Fire officials determined the fire started in one of the pots on the burner of the stove top. It was still on when the occupant left the apartment. The fire was ruled an accident.
The Lafayette Fire Department stated cooking is the leading cause of home fires and home fire injuries in the United States. They provided the following tips:
-Always stay in the kitchen when you are cooking
-Keep anything that can catch on fire away from your stove top
-Use the lid to smother a fire and turn off the burner
-Have a fire extinguisher nearby
-Call 911 immediately
