A fire that started in the dishwasher caused some pricey damage to a Penhold home on June 30.
Penhold fire chief Jim Pendergast said two homeowners suffered from smoke inhalation after their dishwasher went up in smoke at about 1:30 p.m. One was taken to hospital for precautionary reasons.
“It's extremely unusual,” he said of the dishwasher fire. “It burnt through the insulation.”
One of the homeowners put out the fire with an extinguisher. The fire department remained on scene for about an hour and a half removing debris and smoke and checking on things.
Pendergast estimates the damage could be around $40,000 due to some irreplaceable antique furniture being affected and the fact that the floor had just been redone in the home.
Four Penhold fire trucks and one Red Deer County truck attended the scene. Pendergast said they called in the county because a minimum of 14 people is needed for a structure fire.
“It being a long weekend, we were short of people,” Pendergast said. Volunteers staff the Penhold Fire Department.
Pendergast said the response time was about 12 minutes. No one was at the fire hall when the call came in, he said.
