OCEANSIDE - Unattended food on a hot stove sparked a North County house fire that caused an estimated $100,000 worth of damage Tuesday.
A neighbor reported the blaze in the 4800 block of Glenhollow Circle in Oceanside shortly after 1 p.m. Crews had to break down security doors to get into the residence, which was filled with heavy smoke, Battalion Chief Pete Lawrence said.
It took a contingent of 21 firefighters about 20 minutes to extinguish the flames, which destroyed the home's kitchen and caused extensive heat and soot damage throughout the structure, Lawrence said.
Investigators determined the blaze was ignited by food left cooking when the two residents of the house left on a trip to Orange County, he said.
"The fire extended from the stovetop to the rest of the kitchen and would have destroyed the entire house had the alert neighbor not noticed the light smoke coming from the kitchen vent and called 911," Lawrence said.
The blaze caused about $70,000 in structural damage and destroyed roughly $30,000 worth of contents, he said.
The American Red Cross will help the residents, described as elderly, arrange for interim lodging, according to Lawrence.
