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5 children, grandmother escape accidental cooking fire in Lakeland, officials say

Oldest child helped siblings get out, neighbor assisted grandmother, firefighters say

The scene of a fire in a Lakeland home, photographed May 27, 2022. (Lakeland Fire Department)

LAKELAND, Fla. – Five children all younger than nine years old and their grandmother safely escaped from a burning Lakeland home Friday evening, according to the Lakeland Fire Department.

Firefighters said they were called around 5:30 p.m. to the residence on Blossom Circle East, arriving to find flames had reached the exterior of the house near its kitchen window. Crews had the fire under control in less than 15 minutes, a department spokesperson said in a statement.

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Everyone who was inside of the home when the fire started had gotten out by the time firefighters arrived, according to a news release.

Crews determined that the oldest of the five children assisted in getting her siblings out of the house, but was unable to help her grandmother on her own. Firefighters said a neighbor entered the home and assisted the grandmother across the street, where she was soon taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

No firefighters were injured in their response to what officials said was an accidental cooking fire contained to the home’s kitchen area.

LFD was assisted at the scene by a Polk County Fire Rescue Medic Unit and officers with the Lakeland Police Department, the release stated.

The scene of a fire in a Lakeland home, photographed May 27, 2022. (Lakeland Fire Department)