Whittier home destroyed in fire

WHITTIER — A couple were left homeless Thursday night after a fire that started in the kitchen destroyed the home they were renting.
Whittier police Sgt. Dominic Iraldo said damages were estimated at $250,000 to the structure and $75,000 to the contents. He said no one was injured.
The fire was reported just after 11 p.m. in the 5300 block of Carley Avenue. He said arriving officers saw the fire rapidly spreading throughout the residence.
The fire began in the kitchen while one of the residents was cooking Thursday night.
“She turned away from the stove approximately two minutes. When she returned, the stove was ablaze,” he said.
The woman thinks the cooking grease caught fire, according to Iraldo.
She also told police she saw an oven mitt hanging above the stove catch fire then fall onto the stove.
“When she realized there was a grease fire she put water on it. (She said) she put it out,” Officer Hugo Figueroa said.
Figueroa said the woman and her boyfriend walked out of the house because the kitchen was full of smoke. But when they were outside, he said the couple realized the fire hadn’t been extinguished.
Los Angeles County firefighters knocked down the blaze at 11:31 p.m.
Police said the Red Cross was helping the residents find shelter.
– Ruby Gonzales
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