Grease fire cause of apartment blaze

A late afternoon structure fire last Friday resulted in severe damage to two apartments and the death of a pet.

At 3:59 p.m. on April 25, the Boulder City Fire Department was called for a kitchen fire in the 800 block of Del Rey Drive, which is between Cottonwood Street and Buchanan Boulevard.

According to Acting Chief Greg Chesser, crews arrived on the scene just four minutes later to find a two-story apartment, which houses eight separate units. There, they found heavy smoke coming from a lower-floor apartment.

“Firefighters quickly contained the fully-involved apartment,” he said. “Henderson Fire Department also responded and assisted with full extinguishment and overhaul of the structure.”

One apartment sustained heavy fire damage and another sustained heavy smoke damage, leaving both inhabitable, Chesser said. The other units had no damage from the fire or smoke. Two families were displaced and were assisted with temporary housing.

BCPD also assisted with the response and blocked off the road to thru-traffic.

Chesser gave special thanks to Fire Chaplain Jason King for responding and assisting with the displaced residents.

The cause of the fire had been determined to be unintentional, unattended cooking.

“The fire spread quickly throughout the apartment due to windy conditions and open doors,” Chesser added. “Unfortunately, one pet died during the fire.

“BCFD reminds everyone to always keep your bedroom doors closed. This will slow down a fire spreading in your home. In addition, when cooking with grease, always have a pan cover accessible in case of a grease fire.”