Whanganui cooking fire is the fourth one this month

A fire in this Puriri St house was one of four recent blazes in Whanganui caused by unattended cooking. Photo/File

A kitchen fire in a Gonville house on Friday could have been fatal if not for a working smoke alarm in the house.

Senior firefighter Paul Doughty said two appliances attended the Kauri St address just after 3pm on Friday afternoon and a woman who was asleep in the house had been woken by the smoke alarm.

"There was a pot of cooking fat on the stove.

"The woman went outside when she heard the alarm and her neighbour went in and put a lid over the pot and called 111."

Doughty said the neighbour's quick action was commendable as she ascertained there was no-one else in the house and stopped the fire from spreading.

"We don't recommend that people go into a house where there's a fire but in this instance, it was the right action."

The house fire was the fourth in Whanganui during the past month and all were caused by unattended cooking.

"The messages we want to get out there are 'Keep looking while you are cooking' and 'Smoke alarms are your only voice in a fire'."

Firefighters attended cooking fires in Glasgow St and Puriri St on October 21.

"Both of them started in the kitchens - there was no smoke alarm in the Puriri St house and the occupant wasn't home.

"It was just lucky that a passing motorist saw the smoke and called us."

Doughty says alcohol is a factor in about 50 per cent of cooking fires.

"It is generally males who come home from the pub and start making themselves something to eat then fall asleep on the couch."

While the Puriri St house is now boarded up due to serious fire and smoke damage, the Kauri St house has only some smoke damage and charring in the kitchen.

"The pot on the stove was still too hot to touch when firefighters arrived and they used special equipment to remove it.

"They used a ventilator fan to clear the smoke that had filled the house.

"It could have been far worse and clearly shows the difference a working smoke alarm makes."

Doughty said covering a stove top fire with a lid, chopping board or wet tea towel is a good idea but recommends that the cooking vessel is not touched and residents should stay clear and call the fire service.