Fire crews have tackled two unconnected fires in the Upton area of Chester including one which temporarily closed The Wheatsheaf pub.
Firefighters were called to the kitchen of the Heath Road pub about 3pm on Wednesday, October 15, after spilled fat caught light.
Watch manager Richie Gerrard, of Chester Fire Station, was impressed with the standard of cleanliness and said it was unfortunate fat at the back of a frying unit had gone up in flames. There was “very little” damage and a dry foam extinguisher was used to put out the fire.
Landlord Ross Evans confirmed the pub was shut for the rest of the day but would be open again on Thursday, October 16. He said the fryer would have to be replaced.
Earlier, at about 1.30pm, crews from Chester and Ellesmere Port were called to an upstairs flat in Queens Crescent, Upton, where a fire, which began in the sofa, is now being treated as suspicious.
Four firefighters wearing breathing apparatus, equipped with two hosereels, entered the social housing property where smoke was coming out of the windows which had smashed due to the heat of the blaze. There was nobody inside. A covering jet was used on the outside of the property to provide protection from a potential explosion.
The sofa was completely destroyed and all rooms were heavily smoke-logged, making it uninhabitable.
The fire did not spread to the downstairs flat or neighbouring properties. An ambulance was called as a precaution. Police were also in attendance. An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.
Watch manager Gerrard said the cause of the blaze was being treated as suspicious.
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