Two cooking related house fires in the Bluffton area Friday left one family without a home and one man transported to Savannah for medical attention.

Authorities responded to a fire at 32 Wentworth Drive in Woodbridge after getting a call at 8:37 Friday morning, according to Stephen Combs, Public Information Officer for the Bluffton Township Fire Department. Fire crews arrived to the scene around 8 minutes later at 8:45 a.m.

Only the mother of the family, whose identity was not immediately made available, and the family dog were home at the time of the incident. Both escaped from the home before sustaining any injuries. Her husband and their two young children were away at the time of the fire.

The fire started in the kitchen, possibly from cooking fire. The flames were contained to the structure before being allowed to spread to other homes. The inside of the house was destroyed, according to one neighbor.

As of Saturday morning, the family is accepting donations through a neighbor, Alicia Baldree. The donations primarily include clothing Baldree said, but they are still in need of financial assistance.

As a result of a triggered medical alert pendant, The Bluffton Township Fire Department was then summoned at 8:49 p.m Friday to 150 Cherry Point Road in Okatie. Upon arrival shorthly before 9 p.m, firefighters found the house engulfed in flames, said Combs.

One individual was home at the time.. He was able to exit the structure to his front porch. He was then transported to Savannah Memorial Hospital for medical treatment. His condition and his name have not been released.

According to authorities, the blaze resulted from of a cooking fire.

“The speed at which house fires burn today as compared to several years ago leaves very little time for occupants to safely get out,” said Chief Paul Boulware in a press release , “With the building materials used on today’s homes, fires can quickly consume a home within just a couple of minutes.”

The Bluffton fire department will do a push on cooking safety Combs said. The fire department offered a few tips for avoiding cooking fires:

• Stay in the kitchen while frying, boiling, grilling, or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period of time, turn off the stove.

• When simmering, baking, or roasting food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you are cooking.

• Keep anything that can catch fire — oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels or curtains — away from your stovetop.

• On the stovetop, smother the flames by sliding a lid over the pan and turning off the burner. Leave the pan covered until it is completely cooled.

• For an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed.

• When a grease fire occurs, the first thing to do, if it is safe, is to put a lid on the pan to deprive the fire of oxygen and turn off the heat source.

• Just get out! When you leave, close the door behind you to help contain the fire.