Allenport man hospitalized with severe burns following grease fire
An Allenport man was taken to UPMC Mercy in Pittsburgh with severe burns after a grease fire Thursday, but a fast-acting neighbor prevented the situation from getting significantly worse.
Stockdale Fire Department Chief Tom Wilkinson said they were called to 5 Latta Hollow Road shortly after 11:30 p.m. Thursday. According to Wilkinson, the fire was a cooking mishap, and the man was splattered with hot grease.
“They had a nice neighbor who was Johnny on the spot. He came over with a fire extinguisher from his own house. He knocked it down,” Wilkinson said.
If not for the neighbor, Wilkinson said the fire likely would have spread quickly.
“I made sure I talked to him and thanked him for what he did. We would have been there a few more hours and had a lot more damage,” Wilkinson said.
Snowy weather Thursday night prevented a helicopter from transporting the man, who was not identified, to the hospital. Wilkinson said he was instead taken by ambulance.
The scene was cleared by about 12:30 a.m. Roscoe Fire Department and Rostraver EMS also responded.