Kitchen fire sends teen to hospital
By Joey Pitchford
Published in News on November 23, 2016 6:38 PM
News-Argus/SETH COMBS
Caroline Brown stands at the scene of the house fire at 121 Woodland Ave. Wednesday evening. Brown is the grandmother of the 18-year-old woman fireman say was injured after the fire started while she was preparing a meal.
What started as bubbling grease in a pan ended with one woman sent to the hospital Wednesday evening after a kitchen fire at 121 Woodland Acres Ave. in Dudley damaged the home, said first responders and bystanders at the scene.
Around 5 p.m., the Mar-Mac, Thoroughfare and Arrington fire departments responded to a call at the residence to a report of a structure fire.
Thoroughfare chief Delbert Edwards said that by the time he arrived Toyanna Brown, 18, and the 3-year-old girl she was baby-sitting were out of the house and a fire was burning in the kitchen located near the rear of the home.
"There was extensive damage to the house," Edwards said.
The outer wall at the rear of the home showed smoke damage around a window, and damaged items were strewn around the back yard.
Carolyn Brown, Toyanna's grandmother, lives just up the street. She said that Toyanna had been cooking when the grease in her pan began bubbling over. She said that Toyanna attempted to throw the grease out the back door, but did not make it in time and instead dropped the grease after it burned her hand, starting the fire.
Fire department investigators confirmed this series of events, saying that the fire did not originate from the stove itself but rather from the floor in front of the back door.
Toyanna was transported to Wayne Memorial Hospital for burns to her arms and face. Edwards said he did not know the severity of the injuries or what condition Toyanna was in.